


Trouble Attracts Trouble

by SerenBex



Series: Destiny is Only a Concept [2]
Category: The Bletchley Circle, The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:53:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 31,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22134343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SerenBex/pseuds/SerenBex
Summary: Sometime after the events of 'When the Cards Fall', the ladies find themselves in the middle of something else.Is Kate's presence in their midst more trouble than it's worth?
Relationships: Jean McBrien/Hailey Yarner, Millie Harcourt & Jean McBrien, Millie Harcourt/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Destiny is Only a Concept [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1593190
Comments: 6
Kudos: 28





	1. Chapter 1

Kate and Hailey had become near inseparable, barely a day passing when they didn’t see each other. Jean and Millie were perfectly content with their closeness, having become even closer in their own friendship now that any remaining secrets between them had been revealed. Apart, the two younger women were quite capable of acting their ages but together they would easily pass for a fraction of that. Several times they had returned home from the club worse for wear and promptly fallen asleep in a tangled heap on the settee of whichever house they’d aimed for.

Just before Kate had been released from hospital, Jean had announced that she might start looking for somewhere else to live, somewhere without quite so many steps. Millie and Kate had been quick to try and change her mind, thinking that it was some sort of misplaced attempt to give them some privacy, but Jean had resisted. She informed them that she couldn’t care less if they loved having her around; she needed some space away from them.

It seemed inevitable to their friends that Hailey and Jean ended up sharing an apartment, just around the corner from Millie and Kate. The two women attempted a couple of lame lines about combining their finances and sharing making sense, but they were completely unconvincing to those who knew them best.

Iris had struggled to understand at first, especially when she found out that Millie and Kate were in a relationship as well. Eventually, though, she had come to realise that they were still the same four women that she had known before. She apologised to Hailey, which was all that was needed for the others to forgive and forget, understanding that it had been a huge shock to her and accepting them for who they were was not something that she had been able to do lightly.

“Do you think Millie’s changed since she and Kate got together?” Hailey asked Jean one evening as they sat together on the settee.

Jean was trying to get through at least one more chapter of her book, steadfastly ignoring the way her lover was sitting with her legs flung over her lap and one hand gently twisting strands of her hair, her fingertips ghosting over the nape of her neck every now and then. When Hailey dropped her head to rest against the side of Jean’s, her lips pressing soft kisses to the skin between her neck and her shoulder, the Scot gave up on any idea of finishing her reading.

“What do you mean?” She asked, trying to sound disinterested and exasperated at the same time.

“I was just wondering. Kate said Millie thinks you’ve changed; you’re softer. She thinks that I’ve been good for you.”

“She does, does she?” Jean arched an eyebrow at the smug expression on her lover’s face. “No need to get big headed about it, dear.”

“I will if I want to.” Hailey told her defiantly, pressing a kiss to her shoulder. “So? Has Millie changed?”

Jean thought for a moment. “She’s happier… more settled.”

“I think Kate is too.” Hailey mused. “I mean, I didn’t know her before, but I get the feeling she wasn’t happy; that she was always searching for where she belonged? That would explain the affairs.”

“Mmm… I think you might be right, love.” Jean agreed with a slight nod. “She was so self-depreciating when I first met her. She asked whether I knew what it was like to always be an inconvenience, to be in the way wherever I went.”

“She found the family she’d always been looking for here, didn’t she?”

Jean nodded. “I think we all have.”

There was a long, comfortable silence before Hailey spoke again, voicing something she had always wondered about. “Have you and Millie ever… you know?”

Jean chuckled, wrapping an arm around Hailey and pulling her closer. “No, dear. I don’t think either of us was inclined to make that leap. We’re too good friends, I think. There was always too much at stake.”

“She is very attractive, though.”

“I’ll try not to be too offended.” Jean told her with a soft chuckle.

Hailey immediately turned horrified eyes on her. “Jean, you know I–”

“I was teasing, dear. I am in no doubt about how you feel about me, let alone how attractive you find me.”

“Good, because I do. I really do.”

The comfortable silence descended once more and Jean was just considering picking up her book once more when Hailey nuzzled the underside of her jaw. With a soft sigh, the older woman reclined against the back of the settee, exposing more of her neck to her girlfriend.

“Did Millie tell you about Kate’s job?”

Jean exhaled, straightening and looking at her seriously. “She hasn’t lost another job?”

“Ahh… so she _hadn’t_ told you?”

“Why do I get the impression that I’m missing something, here?”

Hailey scrunched up her nose. “I might have had something to do with it.”

“Oh, Hailey! Not again!”

“No, no… not like last time.” She shrugged. “It was that creep who keeps asking her out on dates and doesn’t understand the word no.”

Jean made a sound in her throat that told Hailey she was hugely unimpressed, whatever the cause of her actions. “Is there any chance you could put in a word for Kate with–?”

“Jean? No chance!” The younger woman couldn’t help a snort of amusement escaping unchecked. “Can you imagine Kate fiddling around under a car?”

“Maybe not.” She admitted. “I _was_ thinking more on the administrative side, though.”

“They’re reluctant enough to have _me_ there.”

“Well, you’d better hope she finds another position and you don’t have a hand in her losing it again.”

* * *

“It was my eighth rejection this week, Mills, and it’s only Thursday.” Kate complained, rolling onto her stomach and propping her head up on her hand. From her position on the bed she was watching Millie hunting for something in the wardrobe. “I might as well give up.”

“You said that last time, darling.” The older woman replied, paying no attention to her dramatics. “That’s when you got the secretary’s job in the mayor’s office.”

“Yes, and look how well _that_ went.”

“It wasn’t your fault. I would have reacted in exactly the same way.”

Kate sighed deeply, not doubting it for a second, but knowing it wouldn’t help her situation. “I probably shouldn’t have told Hailey, though.”

“No, perhaps _that_ was a mistake.” Millie agreed.

After repeatedly dodging invitations to go out for drinks with one of her colleagues at the mayor’s office, Kate had finally snapped at the persistent young man that she wouldn’t step out with him if he were the last human being on the planet. Even her outburst in the middle of the busy office could probably have been glossed over. However, Hailey punching him when she arrived to meet Kate for lunch and found her, yet again, trying to dodge his advances could not so easily be swept under the carpet and Kate had found herself unceremoniously cast out without so much as a reference.

“I’ll go and see Archie in the morning,” Kate sighed, “maybe he’ll give me a couple of shifts at the club until I find something else.”

“Because that went so well last time. The one time Archie asked you to help him out behind the bar, you smashed a whole rack of glasses.”

“OK, so I’m totally useless.” Kate rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling and exhaling sharply. “I know, OK?”

“You’re not totally useless.” Millie denied with a deep sigh. She stopped hunting in the wardrobe, pulling out a pair of wide-legged trousers and laying them over the back of the chair at the dressing table. “You’re good at plenty of things. Besides, if you were _totally_ useless, I probably wouldn’t love you so much.”

Smiling down at her girlfriend, who was staring up at her with a disbelieving look on her face, Millie crawled onto the bed. She hovered above the younger woman, holding herself up just out of the redhead’s reach, before dipping her head low enough to capture Kate’s lips in a gentle kiss. Letting out a squeak of surprise, she suddenly felt herself being knocked onto the soft bedspread as Kate rolled them. Sending her a cheeky, triumphant grin, the younger woman immediately descended upon her.

* * *

“You share an apartment with that other British woman, right?”

Kate frowned, turning to see who had spoken. The dishcloth held tightly in her hand paused in its wiping of the table between her and the young man who had spoken, her head tilting a little to one side as she appraised him carefully. She didn't think she’d seen him before or, if she had, she hadn’t noticed or remembered him.

“Who wants to know?”

He held up his hands, sending her a crooked grin. “It was more of a way of breaking the ice than a genuine question. I’m Daniel Brooker.”

“That’s nice for you,” Kate turned her attention back to the table, “but I’m working, so...”

“What time do you finish?”

“Depends how busy we get.”

“You get a break though?”

“Again, depends if we get busy.”

He grinned. “So if it doesn’t get too busy, can I buy you a drink?”

“If it doesn’t get busy, I’ll work through my break and leave early.” Kate told him bluntly, still not looking up from the table. She picked up the few glasses on the surface, giving it a final wipe, before heading back behind the bar.

“So can I buy you a drink if it does get busy?”

Kate sighed exasperatedly at his persistence. “Look, I’m sorry you’re not picking up on the hints, but I’m not interested.”

“You’re not married?” When she frowned at him, he mistook her irritation for interest. “No ring.”

“Whether I’m married or not has no bearing on whether I’m interested in you.”

“So you’ll let me buy you a drink?”

“Don’t make me call Archie.” She threatened, beyond irritated that he was persisting.

Her job in the club came with the usual interest from the punters, but most were respectful enough to take the hint and leave her alone. There were one or two who got a little handsy, but Kate could deal with them. It was the ones who couldn’t read between the lines of her dismissive retorts to their questions and comments that wound her up the most. The ones, like this man, who didn’t seem to realise that she had absolutely no interest in them and that that wouldn’t change no matter how hard they tried, were the ones who really riled her up.

“You got a boyfriend, then? Is _he_ your boyfriend?”

Kate couldn’t help but snort with amusement at that. It was obvious that her boss had eyes for no one but Millie. “No, he’s not. Doesn’t mean he won’t kick you out on your ass, though.”

Spotting her friends entering the club with Iris’ husband in tow, she dropped the cloth she had been clutching in a vice-like grip. Turning her back on the young man, completely ignoring his presence and hoping he’d finally get the message, she quickly fixed up a tray of their usual drinks and rounded the bar.

“Let me help.”

Kate sent the young man a withering look. “It’s my job, so no.”

Striding across the room to the table where her friends had settled themselves, Kate smiled and set the tray down. They thanked her, as they always did when their first round appeared without being ordered. Stealing the cigarette from between Millie’s lips, Kate took a long drag, before handing it back and leaning on the back of Hailey’s chair. She could see her girlfriend watching the young man at the bar in her peripheral vision, pretending that she was hunting for something in her handbag.

“Who’s that?” Hailey asked, completely failing to show any of the subtlety the others were attempting to engage.

“Dunno... just a punter. He’s no one important.”

“Really?”

“Course. He told me his name but I can’t remember it. David or Dennis or something.”

“Is he bothering you?” Marcus asked, catching the young man’s eye as he turned to glance at them.

Kate leant sideways and patted his shoulder gratefully. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

“You sure?”

“Positive.”

“You make sure you tell Archie if he does.” Jean cautioned her seriously.

“Or Marcus.” Iris added.

“I will.” Kate promised, touched by their concern. “He’s just trying his luck, that’s all.”

“I’d hate for Hailey to punch him and lose you another job.” Millie told her, not looking as though that scenario would bother her at all. “It’s quiet in here tonight?”

“Archie’s hoping it’s going to heat up later.” Kate told them. “I think he was going to ask Iris to play.”

“It’s been a while since I performed.” The woman said with a long sigh. “I’m a bit rusty.”

“All the more reason to do it.” Millie told her with a nod. She huffed and reluctantly lit another cigarette, realising that she had lost hers to her girlfriend. “Have you ever heard her play, Kate?”

The redhead shrugged. “Once or twice, possibly. I’d love to hear it again.”

“Chamberlain!” Hearing Archie calling her, she glanced towards the bar and saw him indicating that there were punters who needed serving. “Any chance of some help?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming.” She grumbled, as though it was a huge imposition, heading back to join him and causing her friends to chuckle in amusement.

He pretended to scold her, grinning as Kate rolled her eyes and retorted cheekily, making the customers waiting to be served laugh. She had never thought she would be remotely suited to, let alone enjoy, working as a barmaid, but Kate found that it was perhaps her favourite job to date. She could imagine the expressions that would appear on her family’s faces if they found out what she did and half-wished that they could see her for that reason alone.

“That’s one strange mix of people.”

Kate exhaled sharply as the young man, who seemed intent on annoying her, reappeared in front of the bar once more. “Well luckily for you they aren’t likely to ask you to join them.”

“Shame...”

Against her better judgement, Kate couldn’t help herself replying. “Why? I thought you said they were a strange mix?”

“If I got in with them, you might let me get to know you.”

“I wouldn’t.” She assured him. “You really are wasting your time.”

“OK, so let’s say I’m intrigued.”

“By what?” Kate frowned. “I’m far from interesting enough to warrant intrigue.”

He laughed. “I’m intrigued as to how three Brits, a black couple and a hick got to be friends. I mean, it’s hardly a normal grouping, is it? You wanna be careful, a nice girl like you; you might start giving the wrong impression and then where would you be?

“Hey! You don’t know anything about us. You come in here, trying your luck and completely ignoring me when I say I’m not remotely interested in you. They’re five of the best people I’ve ever had the good fortune to meet and I don’t bloody care what anyone else thinks of me. As long as I have their good opinion, that’s all that matters.”

“What’s going on?” Archie appeared at Kate’s side, hearing raised voices and noticing that the group at the table were watching tensely.

“Nothing.” Kate said through gritted teeth. “I was just suggesting he should find a table. He wouldn’t want to miss Iris playing later.”

“We were just having a conversation.” The man said, equally calmly, making no sign that he was planning to move away from the bar. “There’s no problem.”

“Kate?”

“It’s fine.”

Archie didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t push it. Instead he nodded his head to a couple of tables at the back of the room. “There’s glasses need collecting.”

Nodding sharply at him, Kate rounded the bar and made her way in the direction he’d motioned. Placing the glasses on a tray, she gave the surface a cursory wipe, before repeating the action with the tables around it. She sensed someone moving to stand beside her, instantly recognising Millie’s perfume. A relaxed smile tugged at her lips and her shoulders dropped slightly.

As though sensing the tension slowly leaving her girlfriend, Millie sighed. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing, honestly, sweetheart. Just a guy who can’t take a hint.”

“Eurgh, the entitlement of men.”

Kate chuckled. “Exactly.” She looked over to where her friends had been sitting, noticing that the table was now deserted. “You lot heading home?”

“Jean and Hailey are.” Millie confirmed. “Iris has agreed to play a couple of numbers and Marcus saw someone he knows so he’s gone to talk to him. I’m planning on sticking around for a while.”

Tilting her head appraisingly, Kate smirked. “Keeping an eye on me, are you, Ms Harcourt?”

“Not _you_ , darling.”

“I’ll be fine. If you want to go home–”

“I’d rather wait until you’re finished for the night.” Millie told her firmly.

“You’ll only get bored.” Kate pointed out, a teasing smile on her lips. “Honestly, sweetheart, I’ll be fine. I’m sure Archie will let me go sooner rather than later anyway. I have a feeling tonight will be an early close up, so he’ll probably walk me home.”

“Make sure he does.” The older woman replied seriously. Then she sighed. “Are you sure you don’t want me to stay?”

“No, go now with Jean and Hailey. It’ll make me feel better if the three of you head home together.”

Millie nodded, reaching out and squeezing Kate’s hand for a moment. “Fine. I’ll see you soon. Make sure Archie walks you.”


	2. Chapter 2

Kate’s assessment had been correct and barely an hour after Millie and the others had left, Archie called time and closed up for the night. The young man who’d been hanging around seemed to have finally got the message and was nowhere to be seen as they locked up and left, much to Kate’s relief.

As he usually did on the nights when Millie and the others weren’t at the club, Archie insisted on walking Kate home. He never tried anything, was never anything other than the perfect gentleman. Kate was sure that he knew the truth about her and Millie, Jean and Hailey, but he never even hinted at it and the others were disinclined to believe her. Jean was the most cautious about anyone finding out about her relationship with Hailey and, while the three younger women were less anxious about it, they didn’t advertise what they were either. Kate was sure she could trust Archie, the looks he sent her told her that he knew exactly where her affections lay, but couldn’t quite bring herself to test that theory either.

They chatted companionably as they neared the neighbourhood that held the house Millie and Kate were renting, keeping topics light and innocuous. Crossing the street and walking the final few yards to the house, Archie cleared his throat nervously. Turning a curious eye on him, Kate privately hoped that whatever he had to say wouldn’t take long. She could see the inviting warmth of the lamp in the living room, her heart leaping as she realised Millie must have waited up for her.

“I need your help, Kate.” Archie said, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked at her imploringly. “I know you and the others have worked on solving a few crimes. I’ve got something I’d like you to take a look at. Those abducted women…”

“What is it?” She asked curiously.

“I’m not completely sure.” He admitted. “It might be nothing.”

“Why don’t you come round in the morning and speak to the others? They’re the real detectives around here, not me.” Kate suggested with a weak smile. “I’m not sure they’ll be able to help, though. They haven’t done anything like that since… for a while.”

He nodded in agreement, watching as she ascended the steps and entered the house. Letting herself in, Kate smiled brightly at the sight of Millie stretched out on the settee, her chest rising and falling as she slept. Kneeling beside her, the younger woman brushed the hair away from Millie’s face, before pressing a light kiss to her lips.

“You’re home.” Millie murmured, a sleepy smile appearing on her face as she met Kate’s eyes.

Warmth rushed through the redhead as it always did when Millie referred to the flat as their home. Kate thought that she would have felt at home anywhere, as long as woman in front of her was with her and, privately, she hoped that perhaps Millie might feel the same way.

“I’m home.” She agreed simply, kissing her again.

“I missed you.”

Kate laughed softly. “I was only an hour or so.”

“I still missed you.”

“I missed you too, sweetheart.” She pressed a quick kiss to the tip of Millie’s nose before rocking back on her heels to look at her properly. “You always get soppy and sentimental when you’re half-asleep.”

“I do not.”

“Yes you do.” Kate informed her firmly. “Come on, let’s get to bed.”

Millie was upright in a second, one eyebrow raised and reaching for her girlfriend. “Yes, please.”

“Millie!” Laughing and doing her best to evade her, Kate led the way to their bedroom.

* * *

“Oh, did Archie come round earlier?” Kate asked, suddenly remembering the half-conversation she’d had with her boss the night before.

She’d been out looking for jobs that morning, determined to find something that would be more of a help paying the bills than her shifts at the club. Millie hadn’t said anything, but Kate knew that things were starting to get tight and Edward wasn’t going to be lenient forever.

“Yes, he did. How did you–?”

“He mentioned it last night. What did he want?”

“Oh, he’s got something he wants us to look into.” Millie told her with a shrug.

Kate glanced towards Jean quickly, remembering the last time they’d got themselves mixed up in something they probably shouldn’t have. “Is that sensible? After last time...”

“I’m quite alright.” Jean assured the younger woman, smiling warmly at her. When Kate continued to look worried, she sighed. “Kate, life goes on and I won’t be wrapped up in cotton wool for the rest of mine.” Catching the redhead glancing quickly at Hailey, Jean arched an eyebrow. “And there’s no point looking at her, either. Hailey knows better than to try and argue with me.”

In answer, her girlfriend shrugged. “I wouldn’t dare.”

“Quite right.” Millie nodded sharply, although Kate knew she still woke in the night after nightmares where Jean hadn’t made it back to them in one piece. “But it sounded interesting... definitely something we should look into.”

“I agree.” Iris nodded quickly. “Five women missing, but no bodies recovered yet. They must be somewhere... hopefully still alive.”

“You four can do what you want. I don’t want anything to do with it.” Kate told them irritably. Picking up her teacup, she disappeared into the bedroom and shut the door firmly behind her.

Hailey grinned. “She doesn’t mean that. As soon as it starts getting interesting she’ll want to be involved.”

“Of course she will.” Jean agreed mildly. “She’s just worried, that’s all.”

“She hates admitting she’s got feelings,” Millie agreed, “because it means she’s got something to lose.”

“She’s a good girl.” Jean nodded fondly, dropping her gaze to her newspaper.

“Oh, that she is.” Her friend muttered, shooting Hailey a wink. As the younger woman attempted, failing miserably, to stifle her snort of amusement, Millie cleared her throat. “So, where do you think we should start?”

* * *

It had been almost a week since Archie had asked them to look into the disappearances of women in the several blocks around the club. So far Kate was sticking to her word and having nothing to do with any of it. She had taken to huffing loudly and flouncing out of rooms to convey her objections, much to everyone else’s amusement.

While Jean, Millie and Iris had decided to go and follow up on some leads they’d uncovered, Hailey had elected to take Kate out and try and lighten her up a little bit. So far, though, her friend was remaining stubbornly averse to the subject, even with three bourbons inside her.

“Did you tell her the real reason I punched that slime ball?” Hailey asked, dropping onto the stool beside her friend’s and handing her a pint.

“What do you think?” Kate sighed, nodding her head in thanks as she took a sip of her drink. She was used to Hailey’s habit of starting conversations as though she were already partway through them. “I don’t want Millie to know; she’d only worry.”

“But he followed you here and then tried to blackmail you.”

“I know that.” She sighed, shaking her head. “That’s why you punched him. Can you imagine Millie’s reaction? She already worries about us coming here… she worries we’ll be targeted on our way home. If she knew that Michelson followed me here and then home… If she knew that he’d tried to blackmail me into sleeping with him…? She’d be devastated. I can’t do that to her.”

It had been eight months since Kate’s abduction and near-death, but Millie was still incredibly wary about history repeating itself, more so than the young woman herself. Possibly because of this, Kate was very blasé about the whole thing. She knew, though, how worried Millie really was about her and did her best to reassure her as best she could.

“She was worried the other night… with that guy at the club.”

“I know.” She sighed again. “She doesn’t like me working there and I’m trying to find another job, but… I feel like I waited so long to get Millie to notice me and I can’t help feeling something’s going to happen and ruin it all.”

“You’re not such a hopeless case as all that.” Hailey teased gently. “If she didn’t care so much, she wouldn’t be so worried.”

“How can you stand letting Jean get herself involved in something else after we nearly lost her?”

Hailey didn’t answer immediately, mulling over her answer. “Jean’s a grown woman. I ain’t _letting_ her do anything. Course I’m worried about her, but worrying never does any good. I’d much rather be there to make sure nothing ever happens to her again.”

Considering her words for a moment, Kate realised that she was right. At least if she was part of the investigating she’d know what was going on and be able to make sure no harm came to her friends. Mulling it over while she finished her drink, the redhead went to buy the next round while she considered how to back down without losing face.

“How is the job hunt going?” Hailey asked, changing the subject easily, as though she sensed the inner turmoil her friend was struggling with.

“Millie and I have accepted the fact that we are destined to be poor, but happy.” Kate informed her with a shrug. “It’s a far cry from where we came from, but as long as we can pay the rent and feed ourselves, we’ll be OK.”

“You might not be rich any more, but at least you’re both happy now.”

“Exactly. We have each other.” The older of the two nodded. She reached for her drink, contemplating it for a moment before speaking again. “If I had to, I’d go to my brother or sister for money. I’d do that for Millie. I wouldn’t do it for me; I’d rather starve than go cap in hand to them. But I’d do it for her.”

“If I had someone to go to, I’d do the same for Jean.”

Kate chuckled. “Jean wouldn’t want that. Neither would Millie. Really, I think it would be more trouble than it’s worth.”

Hailey laughed too, nodding in agreement. “So, you never really talk about your family? What was it like growing up in a big fancy house?”

Pulling a face, the redhead shrugged. “I don’t really know. I spent more time away from home than in it. My parents sent me off to boarding school at seven, although I’m sure if they could have found one that would take me earlier they would have sent me before then. When I wasn’t at school I was usually with a nanny or on my own. I got pretty used to my own company.”

“Boarding school must have been fun, though? All those midnight feasts and living with your friends?”

“Mmm…” Kate sighed. “I know I sound ungrateful and I’ve had it better than most, but my childhood isn’t something I really like to dwell on. You’re a much more positive person than me, Hailey. I wish I was more like you, but I’m not. I hated growing up in my family and, let’s be honest, they hated me being in it just as much. Every time I did something they didn’t approve of it just seemed to compound their belief that I was wrong, that I was broken in some way.”

“My family wasn’t a fairy tale either.” Hailey told her quietly, a gloomy expression crossing her face. It looked totally out of place on the usually sunny countenance. “I mean, they tried, but they didn’t understand me. They didn’t get why I wanted to get out of town and not settle down and get married young like my sisters.”

“You’ve got sisters?” It suddenly occurred to Kate that she didn’t really know very much about her friend.

“Three.” Hailey nodded, running her index finger around the rim of her glass. “And two brothers. I’m the youngest. Our farmhouse was always full of people; aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.” She wrinkled her nose for a moment. “You might have been lonely spending so much time alone, but I was lonely in the middle of a big family.”

“Have you seen them since you left?”

She nodded. “A few times… funerals, weddings and christenings mainly.”

“What’s it like? Going back, I mean.”

“It’s strange.” Hailey admitted, pausing to take a sip of her drink. “I’m the only one of my siblings and cousins who’s not married with children now. That’s usually the main topic of conversation any time I see my family. It’s easier to stay away.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever see my family again.” Kate said softly. Then she shrugged. “Not that it’ll be much of a loss.”

“You won’t miss any of them?”

Kate paused, considering the question. Then she shrugged, a blank expression in her eyes. “Maybe. It doesn’t really matter though, does it?”

“You’ve got us, Kate.” Hailey told her firmly, reaching across and taking her hand. “We’re your family now.”

The redhead smiled, squeezing the hand in hers. “I know.”

“So, I know that Millie was the cause of you realising you were queer, and we all thank her for that,” she grinned cheekily, sending her friend a wink, “but who was the first girl you kissed?”

“Getting a bit personal, there, Yarner.” Kate chuckled, leaning back in her seat and toying with her glass. “I was sixteen… staying with my Aunt Cora in Devon. I’d been kicked out of school for… various reasons… so my mother thought banishing me from London would stop her being embarrassed by her friends reactions to the news. I’m pretty sure she never told anyone that I’d been expelled.” As her friend leant forward, resting her chin on her palm, Kate smiled. “I met Laura at a family party… she was just as bored as I was and asked if I wanted to escape. We slipped past our families and went to the beach… she kissed me under the stars. It was… magical.”

“What’d you get expelled for?”

Kate laughed, seeing the mischievous twinkle in her friend’s eyes and knowing she was trying to bring her out of the slightly melancholic mood the memory had put her into. “You name it, I’d probably done it.”

“I knew you were a bad girl.”

“What about you, then? You can’t ask me the question and not answer it yourself.”

Hailey frowned at her, taking a fortifying sip of her drink before speaking. “Sarah Carter. We were fifteen… she was my best friend. She sucker punched me.” She shrugged, sending Kate a wry smile. “She’s married to my cousin, Eddie, now. They have two kids. That’s one family wedding I _didn’t_ go to.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Hailey shook off her sadness and winked. “I’ve got Jean; she’s everything I’ve ever wanted.”


	3. Chapter 3

Millie was out of the flat before Kate woke the next morning, so the redhead took the opportunity to familiarise herself with everything that they’d found about the recent disappearances. There was quite a lot of information to trawl through and Kate understood why they had taken on the case. She began to feel incredibly selfish for being so ardently against what they were doing to try and find the missing women.

“What are you doing?”

Kate jumped, whirling round to look at her girlfriend almost accusingly. “Are you trying to kill me?”

“Darling, you were so engrossed in those papers that if I had been, I would almost certainly have succeeded.” Millie informed her casually, leaning down to press a kiss to the top of her head. “What are you doing? I thought you had no interest in this?”

“Hailey might have made me see reason last night.” Kate admitted grudgingly. “Besides, you and I both know I was being ridiculous and childish.”

“Well, I wasn't going to say anything…”

“I’m just worried, that’s all.” The younger woman said softly. “If anything happened to any of you… and what use am I?” She shrugged, sweeping a hand over the sheets of paper in front of her as her girlfriend knelt down beside her chair. “You four have made all these connections, worked all this out. I could never do that. I don’t even _understand_ all of this.”

“That’s precisely why we need you, darling.” Millie told her gently, placing a finger under her chin and lifting it so that their eyes met. “Sometimes we’re too clever for our own good. We need you to ground us, to spot the things we overlook, to provide us with an occasional reality check.” She smiled. “Besides, I want to share this with you.”

“So… are you going to explain this to me, then?”

“Later.” Millie raised herself up on her knees and kissed Kate firmly. Wrapping her arms around the younger woman’s waist pulling her closer, she felt hands tangling in her hair and smiled into the kiss. “Bed.”

The husky voice in her ear sent a shiver through the younger woman and she needed no persuasion to follow her through the flat and into their bedroom. Before they’d even reached the door, Millie’s fingers were making light work of the buttons on her blouse and the brunette’s dress was in danger of hitting the floor and tripping them both up. She kicked it away from her feet, sending it sliding under the bed as they fell onto the mattress in a giggling tangle of arms and legs.

The front door opening and a cheery call caused both women to snap their attention onto the open bedroom door. Kate was the first to move, throwing herself across the space and pushing it shut with her whole body. A frantic, whispered conversation broke out as the redhead fumbled with her buttons and Millie hunted under the bed for her discarded dress.

“Ah, there you are.” Jean greeted Kate distractedly as she slipped out of the bedroom, attempting to make herself look presentable and innocent at the same time. “Is Millie back yet? Good gracious… you’re all flushed. Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Kate waved her concern away, turning to fill the kettle in order to hide her blush and avoid Hailey’s amused, knowing expression. “Yes, Millie’s back. She’s just… she’ll be out in a minute.”

Sure enough, a moment or so later Millie emerged from the bedroom, shooting their friends a warm smile and lighting a cigarette. Kate glared at her, irritated that her girlfriend had had time to put herself back together properly, while she still looked a flustered mess. Seeing the expression on her face, Millie pressed a fleeting kiss to Kate’s temple as she passed, taking over the tea-making duties.

“The next meeting of the book club is tonight, so we need to rearrange with Detective Bryce.” Jean told them, either not noticing or ignoring what had passed between her friends. Kate thought it was most likely the latter. “Unless you go without me.”

“Can’t you rearrange?” Millie asked, pulling a face.

“I don’t think so… it’s already been rearranged twice. Besides, Bryce doesn’t want to see me, anyway. You’re more likely to get something out of him if it’s just you two.”

“Perhaps, but I’d rather it not be just us two.” Millie informed her lightly, placing their mismatched china on the table.

“Kate will be working and I’m sure Hailey won’t mind keeping her company at the bar. They won’t be far away if you really need them.” Jean said, arching an eyebrow. “No one’s asking you to do anything you’re not comfortable with, dear, but we do need to know what the police know.”

“Jean’s right.” Kate said suddenly, surprising them all. “From what I can see there’s a couple of pieces of key information missing and I don’t doubt the police know what we need to. If you can get Bryce to tell you whether all four women were treated by Doctor Logan, then that gives us enough evidence to get them to look into him seriously. Without that, everything we’ve got is circumstantial.”

Hailey smirked. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to keep up the moral high ground.”

“It wasn't a moral high ground.” Her best friend shot back. “I had legitimate–”

“She’s right, Millie.” Jean interrupted, knowing that the two younger women could very effectively derail their conversation in moments. “We need something concrete to bind what we’ve got together. That would be enough for them to take us seriously and look into Doctor Logan.”

“Fine.” Millie threw up her hands, not looking at all happy about being ganged up on. “Fine, I’ll do it, but I’m leaving at ten when Kate’s shift ends.”

“As if I’d leave you there.” Her girlfriend replied, rolling her eyes.

* * *

“Did Jean and I interrupt something earlier?” Hailey asked with a toothy grin, already knowing the answer.

“Yes, you bloody did.” Kate told her, narrowing her eyes and leaning against the opposite side of the bar. Then the scowl dropped from her face and she dropped her head to rest on her arms. “Did Jean realise? Oh, god, that would be awful.”

Hailey sniggered. “Jean knows that you have sex, Kate. She also knows that you know _we_ have sex.”

“Yeah, but…” The redhead reluctantly looked up and met her eyes. “Jean’s like the mother I always wanted. And don’t go telling her that because Millie has already warned me to keep that to myself. Apparently Jean wouldn’t be impressed that I think of her as my mother.”

Hailey laughed even more. “Does that make me your step-mother? Are you gonna start calling me Mom?”

“Bugger off.” Kate told her, swatting at her before moving away to serve a couple of punters at the far end of the bar. When she returned, Hailey was watching Millie and Detective Bryce in the booth at the far end of the room. “How d’you reckon she’s getting on?”

“We all know he’d marry her tomorrow if she’d let him.”

The redhead laughed, not remotely bothered by the man. She had no doubts about her girlfriend’s motives at all. Kate knew that Millie wasn’t interested in Bryce for anything other that the information he could give them. In her mind it was just another example of men being unable to take a hint or understand when they were being given the brush off.

“Hey?” Hailey attracted her attention, nodding her head to the other end of the bar. “Isn’t that the guy who was bothering you the other night?”

Frowning, Kate followed her gaze and recognised the young man who’d been relentless in his attentions a week or so previously. “Yeah, that’s him. Don’t you dare punch him.”

Hailey grinned. “Depends if he gets the message or not.”

“Hailey.”

“OK, fine!” She threw up her hands in a display of reluctant acceptance.

“If it wouldn’t lead to me losing another job, I’d happily let you punch whoever you wanted.”

“You make it sound as though I go round punching people for the hell of it.”

Kate laughed, pretending to be surprised by her words. “You don’t?”

They broke off as the man they’d been discussing approached them, sliding onto the stool beside Hailey’s and smiling broadly at the two women. Immediately, Kate’s hackles rose and she arched an eyebrow, snatching up a dishcloth and wiping viciously at one of the glasses under the counter. Hailey looked at the man with interest, not bothering to hide it.

“Daniel Brooker.” He introduced himself, holding out a hand for Hailey to shake.

“Hailey Yarner.” She replied, tilting her head to one side and ignoring the frown her friend was sending her. “This is Kate–”

“Kate Chamberlain, I know. We’ve already been introduced.”

Furrowing her eyebrows, Kate paused in polishing the glasses. She was almost sure that she had never told the man her name when he’d come into the club last. Attempting to convey her concerns to her best friend, who was apparently ignoring her, the redhead set the dishcloth down slowly. While Hailey engaged the man in conversation, Kate watched him carefully, trying to work out whether she could possibly recognise him from somewhere else.

“So? What are two pretty girls like you doing on your own?”

Kate rolled her eyes. “Well I’m working, so…”

“I’m keeping her company.” Hailey said with a shrug.

“Your friend looks like she’s having a good time.” Daniel nodded his head towards the dance floor where Detective Bryce was whirling Millie around.

“Mmm…” Kate made a dismissive noise and turned away under the pretence of getting Hailey another bourbon. “Did you want a drink, or…?”

“Whiskey, please.”

She handed him his drink and accepted the payment, whipping her hand away as he attempted to linger for a moment. As soon as the money was in the till, Kate nodded her head towards the opposite end of the bar. Hailey grinned at her, raising an eyebrow and pretending to think about her silent request for a moment. When the older woman narrowed her eyes warningly, Hailey slid off her stool and wandered in the direction she had indicated.

“I’ve got bad news, Chamberlain.” She said in a teasing tone. “I don’t think he’s all that interested in you.”

“How is that bad news?” Kate muttered. “I hope Millie’s got something useful out of Bryce because in twenty minutes my shift is over and I’m out of here.”

Hailey glanced quickly at the time too. “Jean should be home by now.”

“She’s really enjoying her job at the shop, isn’t she? She’s going the extra mile, anyway, setting up this book club and everything.”

“Yeah, she is.” Hailey’s face lit up with clear adoration for her girlfriend. “It’s great seeing her so happy. It kinda makes me want to read some of the books she talks about, you know? I mean, I won’t, because they actually sound really dull, but the thought’s there.”

Kate laughed. “I’m sure she’s content with the fact that you listen to her talking about them.”

“I could listen to her talking about books for hours… days, even.”

Taking in the dreamy expression that had appeared on her best friend’s face, Kate smiled fondly. She turned her attention to the few punters who’d appeared at the bar, before heading away to collect empty glasses. Every time she looked back at Hailey, she was still in the same position, apparently still daydreaming about her girlfriend.

“Oh, sorry!” Kate apologised hastily, bumping into someone as she skirted the dance floor with her tray of glasses. Seeing who it was that she had collided with, her apologetic smile dropped slightly. “Detective Bryce.”

“Miss Chamberlain.” He inclined his head politely in her direction.

Watching him return to the table where he and Millie had been sitting, gathering up his things and leaving the club, Kate turned curiously to watch her girlfriend talking to Hailey at the bar. The younger woman nodded in response to whatever was being said, before glancing over and catching her eye. Beckoning Kate over, Hailey slid off the bar stood and waited for her to join them.

“You ready to go?”

“I’ve still got ten minutes until–”

“Hey, Archie?” Hailey called, attracting the man’s attention. He appeared, smiling warmly at Millie, before looking at the young woman who had called him. “Millie’s not feeling too great, so is it OK if Kate leaves a little early?”

“Sure.” He agreed immediately, looking concerned. “I hope it’s nothing serious?”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine after a rest.” Millie assured him with a smile, kicking Hailey out of sight beneath the bar.

“See you tomorrow, Kate.”

“Yeah, see you, boss.”

Grabbing her things from behind the bar, Kate hurried across the club after her friends. They paused just outside so that she could pull on her coat properly and Millie could light her cigarette. Hailey pushed her hands into her pockets, glancing up at the cloudless sky and searching for various constellations, out of habit.

“Bryce was out of here pretty quickly.” Kate said finally, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

“He needed to get back to the police station.” Millie said casually, handing over her cigarette so that her girlfriend could take a puff. “There was something he needed to chase up.”

“Did you get anything useful out of him?” The redhead asked, concentrating on the buttons of her coat so she didn’t have to meet anyone’s eyes.

A teasing smile appeared on Millie’s face, hearing the irritation creeping into her girlfriend’s tone. “I found out that he likes the name William for a boy or Alison for a girl.”

The redhead shot her an incredulous look. “Excuse me?”

“I’m joking, darling.” Millie pushed her arm through Kate’s giving it a squeeze. “Yes, all the missing women were patients of Doctor Logan. I told him what we know and he’s going to pull him in for questioning.”

“ _Questioning_?”

“He’s going to arrest him.”

“Good.” Kate nodded, pushing her other arm through Hailey’s. “So we can get back to normal, then?”

“Normal?” Hailey grinned.

They paused as they reached the house the younger woman shared with Jean, watching her go inside with a cheery wave over her shoulder. Sending her girlfriend a lopsided smile and a small shrug, Millie held out her hand, wiggling her fingers invitingly.

“So… I think we should pick up from where we left off before we were so rudely interrupted earlier.”

Kate arched an eyebrow. “Do you now, Ms Harcourt? What if I…?” She trailed off, a confused expression on her face. It quickly morphed into one of shock as she realised who she was staring at. “Christina?”


	4. Chapter 4

Both Kate and Millie stopped dead at the sight of the teenage girl sitting on the steps that led up to the porch of their home. The similarity of the scene to when Kate had arrived in San Francisco was not lost on Millie and she glanced sideways at her girlfriend, seeing the disbelief etched into the younger woman’s features.

“What...?”

“She told me everything.”

“Ev–” Kate swallowed thickly. “Everything? Why would she...?”

Millie didn’t need to ask who or what they were talking about. Instead, she swept them both into the house, carrying the teenager’s suitcase up to the flat and setting it on the floor just inside the door. She offered to make tea, thinking that they might need a couple of moments in private, before abandoning the thought as a tense, heavily silence fell across the flat.

“You’ve grown up so much in the year or so since I last saw you.” Millie told the girl, sending her a warm smile. “But you’re not nearly grown up enough to have travelled here on your own. Where are your parents?”

“According to Josephine, my mother is sitting right there.”

“Christina, I...” Kate’s words stuck in her throat.

“What happened, darling?” Millie asked gently, not in the least surprised by the revelation. She had known the truth since before the teenager had been born.

“We had an argument.” Christina said simply, her eyes never leaving Kate’s face. “That’s nothing new; we’ve never seen eye to eye. Mother lost her temper and told me that the apple never fell far from the tree. When I demanded to know what she meant, she told me the truth. She told me that she’s not my mother. Kate is.”

“I think I should leave you alone to talk.” Millie suggested softly, glancing between them.

As she made to stand up, Kate grabbed her hand desperately. “No, please... stay.”

“Is it true? Are you my mother?”

Kate hesitated for a moment and then nodded. “Yes.”

“But...?”

“I was sixteen... barely older than you are now.” Kate told her, her hands twisting in her lap and she stared resolutely at anything but her daughter. “Josephine knew... she knew something about me and to try and convince her she was wrong I agreed to step out with your father. When I found out I was having you, your grandmother and Josephine decided on the best course of action. I had no say in the matter. I didn’t want to give you up... I wasn’t given a choice.”

“She’s telling the truth.” Millie said softly, reading the reluctance to believe her in Christina’s eyes. “Josephine told me about their plan at the time.”

“You knew?” It was Kate’s turn to sound accusing. “All these years you knew? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Millie sighed sadly. “You didn’t seem to want to talk about it. I thought you’d prefer me not to bring it up.”

“What did Mother know about you?” Christina asked, watching the interaction between the two women curiously. “What were you trying to hide?”

“I’m queer.” Kate told her evenly after a split-second’s hesitation. “I’m attracted to women, rather than men. I...”

“You two are...?”

Millie glanced towards Kate before nodding. “We are.”

“Is that why you came here… to San Francisco? You came because Aunt Millie was here?”

“Indirectly, yes,” her mother agreed, “but also, no. I came because Josephine didn’t want me around the family anymore. There was nothing for me in England and America seemed like an awfully exciting adventure.”

“But… you’re allowed to be together here?” The curiosity was plain on Christina’s face. Both older women were relieved to see there was no judgement, no disgust in her expression. “Is it accepted?”

“Not as such.” Millie told her gently. “We’re very careful; we don’t shout about our relationship or our proclivities, but we have like-minded friends here and, on the whole, we’re left alone.”

Silence fell and Kate twisted her hands awkwardly in her lap. She had the overwhelming urge to run, to escape from the tense atmosphere in the flat and go anywhere else. A glance in Millie’s direction told her that wasn’t an option.

The older woman narrowed her eyes, nodding her head in the teenager’s direction. She shook her head, receiving an even sterner frown in return. As Millie made to stand up, smoothing down her skirt carefully, Kate sent her a pleading look.

“I’m going to make tea. How do you take yours, Christina?”

“Milk, no sugar. Thank you, Aunt Millie.”

“Oh…” Millie blinked. “You don't need to…” Smiling weakly, she turned, unsure how to follow up on the comment. “Tea…”

As she left the room, keeping her ears trained on the conversation – or lack thereof – taking place. In fact, there was complete silence as she busied herself, hoping that one of them would make the first move and speak.

Just as she was carrying the tray back to join the others, Christina’s accusing tone met her ears. “You missed my tenth birthday.”

“I was in no fit state to see you.” Kate admitted. “I didn’t want to scare you with my appearance.” Seeing that she was about to ask for more information, the redhead sighed. “A few nights before your birthday I’d been out with some friends. A couple of men followed us to a club we often went to… somewhere we could be ourselves. One followed me home afterwards and showed me exactly what he thought of me.”

Millie squeezed Kate’s hand tightly and sat beside her on the settee, knowing that it probably wouldn’t have been the only time she’d suffered for being different. “It’s a hazard of being who we are.”

“So I didn’t think arriving for your tenth birthday all battered and bruised would be the wisest idea.”

“Does it happen a lot?” Christina asked softly, looking between the two women with concern.

“Not a lot, but too often to be complacent.”

“Since you came here?”

Kate hesitated, thinking of Michelson attempting to hit her before Hailey jumped to her defence. “No. Not since I came here.”

The tea was poured and quiet fell over them again. Millie could feel the tension radiating off her girlfriend as she sat stiffly beside her, her eyes drifting towards the teenager for a split-second at a time, before snapping back to her teacup once more. Christina seemed confused and apprehensive at the whole situation; something that Millie couldn’t blame her for at all.

“When are you going home?” Kate asked cautiously. “Don’t you have to get back to school? When did Josephine book your passage back to England?”

“She didn’t.”

Millie furrowed her eyebrows, leaning forward. “Surely Josephine doesn’t expect you to find the money yourself? Of course we’ll help you, darling, but we’re not in quite the same financial position as she is.”

“No, I mean...” Christina looked a little awkward. “She doesn’t want me back. She said I should stay here.”

Kate’s jaw clenched. It had been one thing for her sister to ship _her_ off to another continent because she’d had enough of her, but she was a grown woman. Christina was just a child, barely thirteen-years-old. Her hands clenched into fists in fury at her sister’s behaviour.

“Oh, darling.” Millie laid a calming hand on Kate’s leg for a moment, before moving to pull Christina into her arms. “Of course you can stay with us, if you’d like to? I’m not sure what else we can do if you don’t want to... perhaps Jean and Hailey? Or Iris?”

“I’d like to stay with you.” The girl told her shyly. Her eyes drifted past the brunette to watch her mother, still sitting on the settee with a thunderous expression on her face. “I wasn’t sure you’d want me.”

“How dare she? How _dare_ she!” Kate exploded suddenly, standing up and storming over to the telephone. “I’m not going to let her get away with this. She can’t do this!”

“Kate,” Millie was by her side instantly, gently pulling the receiver from her hands and replacing it on the cradle, “no. It’s not important. It’s what happens from now on that matters. A new start.”

“I’m sorry...” They both turned at the small voice belonging to the thirteen-year-old standing in the middle of the room looking as though she wanted the ground to swallow her up. “I’m so sorry.”

“No!” Kate shook her head, striding forward and wrapping the girl in her arms. She cradled the back of Christina’s head and felt hands twist into the back of her sweater. “No, you have nothing to be sorry for. _I’m_ sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Millie hesitated, wondering whether she should excuse herself, when the phone began to ring shrilly. Using the excuse, she turned away from the scene and answered the call, frowning as Hailey’s excited tones gabbled something about Iris and a breakthrough and new evidence. The younger woman hadn’t even bothered to introduce herself or find out who she was speaking to. As soon as she could get a word in edgeways, Millie requested to know whether there was anything they could do that night, or whether they should wait until the next morning.

“I really think you should come now.” Hailey told her seriously. There was a pause as she clearly stopped to listen to something in the background. “Jean thinks so, too.”

“Now is a little tricky.” Millie sighed, glancing over her shoulder. Kate and Christina were sitting nervously on the settee, engaging in a tentative conversation. “Is it imperative that we–?”

“What are you doing that’s more important than finding a potential murderer?”

Hearing the unspoken assumption in her voice, Millie sighed. “It’s not what you think, Hailey. There’s something we need to sort out, but I’ll see if Kate can handle it on her own.”

Ending the call, Millie thought for a moment, before slowly making her way back over to the settee. Smiling at Christina for a moment, she motioned for Kate to join her, leaning in to tell her what Hailey had wanted. The younger woman looked terrified as she suggested Kate stayed with Christina while she went to see what Jean and Hailey had found. Excusing herself for a moment, she headed into the bathroom to compose herself.

“So… why were you really sent here?” Millie asked gently, taking advantage of the few minutes after her girlfriend had excused herself, to get a real answer. “I know it wouldn’t be so you could get to know Kate properly. There’s another reason, isn’t there?”

“She said that I was too like Kate and that she refused to stand by and watch history repeat itself. I think she was talking about Kate having me…”

The older woman looked at her sharply. “Is there anything you need to tell us?”

“No.” Christina shook her head vehemently.

“Good.”

She smiled, reaching out and patting the teenager’s knee as Kate returned. Standing up, Millie moved to collect her coat from the stand beside the door, indicating that her girlfriend should follow her. Promising that she would be as quick as she could and that she wouldn’t say a word about their guest, Millie kissed the redhead quickly, before leaving.

Left alone with her daughter, Kate took a deep breath. She didn’t have the first idea what she was supposed to say. Instead, she nodded her head towards the bedroom that had previously been Jean’s and cleared her throat.

“You can have this room… if that’s alright? It’s comfortable enough and I’m sure Millie won’t mind if you personalise it a bit.” She twisted her hands together awkwardly. “Is there anything you need?”

“Just my suitcase.”

Kicking herself for not having remembered that, Kate rushed to pick it up, the arm of her cardigan catching on the edge of the settee as she did so.

“What’s that?”

Kate followed Christina’s gaze to her right forearm and the still angry scars that stood out against her pale skin. She swallowed thickly, wishing that she been a little less hasty and caused the constant reminder of the ordeal she’d gone through months previously to be revealed. It was impossible to deny the presence of the cross cut into her arm, so Kate didn’t even attempt it.

“There was an incident a few months ago, just after I arrived in San Francisco.” She smiled weakly. “It’s nothing, really. A little unsightly, perhaps, but unimportant.” Placing the suitcase beside the wall just inside the room, she smiled. “Well… goodnight. If you need anything I’ll be here.”

* * *

Jean could tell that there was something bothering Millie from the moment she stepped over the threshold into their home. She was preoccupied as they informed her that Iris had dug up some information on Doctor Logan and his medical practices. It seemed that there had been similar disappearances in Chicago while he had been living there.

“So he’s definitely the right man?” Millie asked distractedly.

“What is wrong with you tonight?” Her best friend demanded, furrowing her eyebrows at her strange behaviour. “What’s going on?”

“And where’s Kate?” Hailey chipped in curiously.

“I told you. There was something we needed to deal with. Kate’s sorting it all out on her own so I could come and speak to you two.”

“You’re no help at all.” Jean pointed out bluntly. “You might as well have stayed with her.”

“I was intending to, until you decided I should be here.” Millie irritably reminded them.

There was a long pause, before Jean’s expression softened and she reached out, covering Millie’s hand with her own. “Is everything alright?”

“Of course. We’re fine.”

“That was a little too quick to be convincing.”

“We’re _fine_.” Millie repeated firmly. “I’m sure you’ll find out what’s going on soon. Until then… please just leave it alone.”

“Millie, if there’s something–”

“Christina.”

Jean stared at her for a moment, contemplating what the name might be in connection to. “What about her?”

“She’s here.”

“Here?” Jean gaped. “How?”

“Josephine.” Millie sighed, catching Hailey frowning between them in complete confusion and shaking her head a little to stop her interrupting. “Kate doesn’t know you know about her. She wasn’t thrilled that I knew and hadn’t mentioned it.”

“Who’s Christina?”

“You’ll find out soon enough, dear.” Jean sighed, reaching over and covering her girlfriend’s hand with her own. “It’s for Kate to tell you.

“But–?”

“Tomorrow morning.” Millie said decisively. “Bring Iris and Olivia. And… whatever new evidence you’ve got.” As she stood, nodding sharply at Hailey, her lips twitched into a brief, sad smile. “I don't want any of you to judge Kate… not all of it was her fault.”


	5. Chapter 5

“What did Jean and Hailey have to say last night?” Kate asked her girlfriend the next morning.

She had been asleep when Millie returned to the apartment and found it in near-silent darkness. The older woman had poked her head around the, formally, spare bedroom door and smiled to herself at the sight of the sleeping child. Clearly Christina was exhausted from the journey and the conversations they’d had to have the evening before.

Similarly, Kate was fast asleep as Millie slipped into their bedroom. She was not particularly peaceful, however, tossing and turning in her sleep and muttering the odd word under her breath. The brunette had sighed and wrapped her arms around her lover, pulling her back against the front of her body and holding her tightly, attempting to offer her what little comfort she could.

“Apparently Doctor Logan might have form.” Millie explained simply. “There are similar cases in Chicago, from the time when he lived there.”

“Right…”

“They’re coming over this morning.”

Kate looked up with wide eyes. “What? Why?”

“Darling… you can’t hide Christina from them.” Her girlfriend reasoned. “The sooner you introduce them, the sooner it’ll be normal and you won’t be panicking about it. Besides, Iris and Olivia are mothers; they might be helpful.”

“Millie…”

“I’d never much considered having children...” Millie mused, distracting her girlfriend with a cup of tea. “I suppose I always assumed I’d need a husband to have children and I didn’t want a husband.”

“I think I’ve proved that a husband isn’t a necessity.” Kate pointed out dryly.

“Well, yes,” the older woman agreed, “but I never considered any other option either.”

Kate arched an eyebrow at her. “I didn’t consider it. It just happened.”

“But you wouldn’t change it?”

At the question, Kate felt as though all the air was being sucked out of her lungs. The weight of the situation seemed to settle on her suddenly. “Millie… I can’t do this. I can’t. I don’t know how to be a mother! I’m not a mother. I just… I just got pregnant and gave birth to a baby. That’s all. I don’t have the first idea how to raise a child!”

“You _can_ do this.” The older woman said, catching her flailing hands and holding them tightly in her own. “You can. I believe in you.”

“I can’t. I don’t know where to start! Christina deserves better than me.”

“Kate, that’s beside the point. You’re all that girl’s got. She needs you.”

“She should go back to England. I’ll… I’ll telephone Josephine and–”

“You’ll do nothing of the sort.” Millie cut across her firmly. “So you don’t know what you’re doing? So you don’t think you’re good enough? Guess what? I don’t agree with you. I think you’re exactly what that girl needs.” She frowned. “If you send her back to England you’re sending her back to Josephine; the woman who sent a thirteen-year-old to completely different continent all by herself. You think she’s better for your daughter than you are?”

Shaking her head, the redhead moved to sit on a chair at the table. “I never thought I’d be in this position, though. I never thought my sister would do this. I thought I’d always be Christina’s aunt. I never considered for a _moment_ that I’d have to raise her. I don’t know how to be a mother.”

“We’ll muddle thorough together.” Millie promised her. She paused, chewing her lip for a moment. “That is, if you want me to be involved. I’d quite understand if you thought–”

“Of course I want you to be involved. I love you, Millie. I want to share every part of my life with you. That includes raising my daughter.”

“Your daughter? I don't think you’ve referred to her as that yet.”

Kate blushed. “Well… that’s what she is, isn’t she? If you won’t let me call Josephine to–”

“No, I definitely won't let you ask your sister to take her back.” Millie told her sternly. Then she let out a soft laugh. “Imagine... yesterday evening children were the very last thing on my mind. Now I’m the mother of a teenage girl!”

Hearing her refer to herself as Christina’s mother caused Kate’s heart to overflow with love for the older woman. Standing abruptly, she cupped her cheeks with both hands, leaning in and kissing Millie with all the emotion that was bursting out of her at that moment. Feeling strong arms wrapping around her, holding her close, Kate let out a soft sigh of contentment.

“What was that for?” Millie asked breathlessly, a laugh in her voice, as they broke apart. “Not that I’m complaining.”

“Because you’re wonderful and I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Kate told her honestly.

“I love you, too.”

Hearing the door of the spare bedroom – Christina’s bedroom now, Kate reminded herself – squeak open, the two women shared a smile before returning to their breakfasts. When their friends arrived, there would be introductions and questions and a lot of delicate manoeuvring around the situation, but for now they could just get to know each other properly.

“Good morning, darling.” Millie beamed at the teenager, seeing her hesitating. “Would you like some tea and toast?”

“Yes please, Aunt Millie.” Christina nodded self-consciously, allowing the brunette to propel her into the room and into one of the chairs at the table.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, thank you. I think I must have been exhausted.”

“I’m not surprised.” Millie chuckled. “Yesterday must have taken it out of you. I certainly slept like a log.” Nudging her girlfriend as she placed a plate of toast in front of the teenager, she smiled at her. “Kate, pass Christina the jam.”

“Here…” Clumsily, she shoved the jar across the surface of the table, attempting to smile at her. Her daughter blinked, apparently scared by the expression on her face. “I… Are you sure that you want to stay here… with us?”

Christina nodded quickly. “Yes, please. I don’t want to go back.”

“OK.” Kate smiled, hesitantly reaching across the table and patting her hand awkwardly. “Good. That’s what we were hoping. Your life here won’t be particularly conventional and it won’t be anywhere near as comfortable as you’re used to. We simply don’t have the finances that your aunt and uncle had.”

“I don’t care about any of that.” Christina assured her with a smile, looking between the two women. “I just want to be here with you two.”

“Oh, darling.” Millie smiled at her affectionately, cupping her cheek. “That’s all we want, too.”

Kate cleared her throat awkwardly. “Christina, when I said that your life won’t be particularly conventional, I was talking about Millie and me. You can’t tell anyone… and should anyone ask… I mean, if anyone says anything about this being a two bedroom apartment…”

“What your mother is trying, and failing, to say,” Millie took over, taking pity on her girlfriend, “is that to anyone outside our immediate circle we sleep in separate bedrooms. If anyone should bring it up, you’re sleeping on that trundle bed in the corner of Kate’s room.”

“Alright,” the teenager agreed easily, “but why would anyone ask?”

“They might not,” the older woman conceded, “but in case they do, at least we’ll give the same answer.”

There was a sharp knock at the door and all three females glanced towards it with varying expressions on their faces. Shooting Christina a reassuring smile, squeezing her shoulder as she passed, Millie went to answer it, standing aside to let their friends into the flat.

At first they didn’t seem to notice the girl sitting at the table, sipping her tea apparently not knowing what else to do. Kate flexed her fingers nervously in her lap, sending Christina a weak smile when their eyes met across the table. While they slipped off their jackets, the four women who had just arrived chatted companionably, each depositing their bags on the settee.

“Hey, Chamberlain, guess what–?” Hailey broke off in surprise at the sight of the child sitting opposite her best friend at the table. “Oh, hi…”

“Aunt Jean!” A bright smile appeared on Christina’s face as she spotted the Scot. She was on her feet in moments, crossing the room and throwing her arms around the older woman. “Aunt Millie never said you were here.”

“Aunt Jean?” Kate looked between her friends in confusion. Then her expression darkened. “Is there anyone who doesn’t know about my daughter?”

“Your _what_?” Hailey’s eyebrows shot towards her hairline and she turned to stare at the child who was still standing with her girlfriend. “She’s your kid?”

“Kate…” Millie nodded her head towards their bedroom, smiling at the others before shutting the door behind them. “I told Jean because I wanted her to keep an eye on Christina while I was away. She’d met her several times on the occasions when she was staying with me, but only knew her as my goddaughter. When I told her the whole truth it was because I never considered that we would be in this situation; I never dreamt the four of us would end up here.”

“She must think I’m…”

“No, Jean completely understands what you went through.” Millie assured her, cupping her cheek. “You’re not the first girl to end up in that situation and you’re certainly not the first Jean has known. She loves you, Kate, even if she won’t admit it; the cantankerous old bat.”

Laughing softly, knowing that Millie didn’t mean the insult in the slightest, Kate scrubbed at her eyes. “I know I’m overreacting… I don’t know _how_ to react to any of this. I don’t want this to be a big deal; we’ve got more important things to think about.”

“No, we haven’t.”

“Millie, there are half a dozen missing women out there somewhere. You and the others need to concentrate on that, not more drama that I’ve dumped on your doorsteps.”

“We can do both.” Her girlfriend assured her. “We _will_ do both.”

When they returned to the living room, it had apparently been decided that no one would ask any questions. Instead, Hailey entertained the teenager while the others immediately began discussing the case. Glancing over towards the settee several times, Kate was amused to see her best friend deep in animated conversation with her daughter, wondering what on earth they could possibly have in common.

“I told you… you don’t have to do this alone. We’re a family.” Millie whispered in her ear, seeing where her attention was focused.

Kate smiled at her before looking at the papers that Olivia had liberated from the police station for them. One was a transcript of the suspect’s interview after his arrest. She scanned it thoughtfully, wondering why something about it felt wrong.

“Hang on… how was he moving the women on his own?” Kate asked suddenly, a frown twisting her features. “It says here that he had no accomplices and was working completely alone. That can’t be right.”

Olivia glanced at her. “What do you mean?”

“Well… the women would be heavy if he’d knocked them out… dead weights. He has an arthritic shoulder. There’s no way he’s going to be able to carry an unconscious woman on his own in broad daylight.”

“So he had help.” Millie nodded slowly. “But who?”

“From what we’ve worked out, there isn’t much in Logan’s life except his work and his dog.” Iris reminded them. “He’s got no family or friends to speak of. So who would help him with this?”

“Look through the lists of staff who work with him.” Jean requested, glancing in Millie and Kate’s direction. “See if there’s anything that jumps out at you.”

“I’ve got to get to work.” Millie told her friend apologetically. “If I’m late again Bob’s threatened to fire me.”

“OK. Kate?”

The redhead winced. “I have things to do today…”

They all glanced, not very subtly, towards the settee in the living room where Christina was still chatting enthusiastically with Hailey. “Ah, of course.”

“Actually, Iris, I was hoping you could help me?” Kate requested, almost reluctantly. “I need to enrol her in school and… well, I’m not sure what else I need to do?”

The older woman smiled kindly and nodded. “Of course.”

“Looks like it’s just you and me, then, Olivia.” Jean said with a wry smile. “Unless you’ve got other plans, too?”

“Actually, I have to get back to the station.” She replied with an apologetic shrug.

“Hey? Don’t forget about me!” Hailey called from the other side of the flat. “I can help you.”

“Oh? Sorry, dear, I thought we’d lost you to the youth element.” Jean teased, smiling fondly at the two females on the settee. “So Hailey and I will look through the lists and let you know if we find anything of interest.”

As they all separated, heading off to their various tasks for the day, Jean and Hailey were left alone at the kitchen table pouring over the information on the potential kidnapper. For a little while they worked in silence, trying to find links and work out who could have been helping Doctor Logan to move the women.

“So… Kate’s got a kid.”

“Mmm…” Jean barely glanced up from the papers. “I’m glad Christina’s here; I think it’ll be good for both of them. Perhaps it’ll calm Millie down a little bit more, too.”

“I’m not sure that’s–” Hailey stopped abruptly, snatching up the paper she’d been reading and looking at it more closely. “Jean! I know this name. Daniel Brooker… that’s the guy who gave Kate the creeps at the club.”

“And he worked with Logan?”

“Apparently so… look!”

“It doesn’t mean that he’s the one, though.” Jean cautioned, casting her gaze over the information. “It could just be a coincidence.”

“What’s the likelihood of that, though?” Her girlfriend pressed. “Archie said that he started coming to the club about a month ago… around the time the first woman went missing.”

“Right, OK. We’ll take it to Detective Bryce and see what he has to say.”

Hayley chewed the inside of her cheek worriedly for a moment. “Are we going to say anything about that gun Archie gave us?”

Jean looked at her sharply. “Not yet. That would just complicate matters. As soon as this is over we’ll take it in, but right now it’s safely locked away and we need the police to be completely focused on solving this one and, let’s face it, they weren’t particularly thrilled about taking it on in the first place.”


	6. Chapter 6

“Hailey!”

Kate shot her friend a furious scowl as the words Hailey had just uttered hung in the air between them. Immediately the younger woman’s eyes widened and an incredibly guilty expression appeared on her face. She glanced sideways at the teenager who was gazing at her with apparent awe.

“A gun? A real gun? Can I see it?” Christina breathed. “I’ve never seen a real one before!”

“Hailey.” Kate glared at her again. “No.”

“Kate, if you don't let me I’ll just go and find it.” The teenager said with a frown.

“I bet you would.” Her mother muttered. “Fine. But you’re not touching it.”

In truth, Kate was quite curious to see the weapon herself. Since Hailey had told her about it she had been itching to do so, but Jean was adamant that it remain safely under lock and key until they handed it over to the police. They hadn’t told Millie, Iris or Olivia, knowing that they would demand they take it to the authorities immediately. Kate had to agree with Jean, though, that the police would be far too easily distracted by the gun to continue with the case at hand.

Hailey gingerly retrieved the firearm and set it down on the table between them. As Christina reached out to touch it, her mother laid a warning hand on her arm and shook her head sharply. With an eye roll that was entirely too reminiscent of the older redhead for Hailey not to grin in amusement, Christina withdrew her hand and hid it in her lap.

“I’d better put it back before Jean gets home.”

“Where did it come from?” Christina asked interestedly, watching as Hailey placed it back in the cupboard.

“Our friend Archie found it.”

“Come on, we’d better get going.” Kate told her daughter with a smile.

A quick glance at the time informed them all that it wouldn’t be long before Jean appeared. Ushering the teenager towards the door, Kate told Hailey they had a few things to do before heading home and would see her later.

“Hang on a second…” Hailey grasped her arm and nodded her head towards the hallway.

When her friend followed her curiously, she pulled the door closed so that Christina wouldn’t hear what they were saying. Kate had come round to ask whether Hailey and Jean would watch the thirteen-year-old that evening while she and Millie were both at work. After immediately agreeing, Hailey just had time to tell her that the police had followed the information they’d given them and recovered the bodies of the missing women from an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city, when Christina had appeared in the room and they’d hastily changed the subject.

“We think Daniel Brooker might be the person who helped Doctor Logan with the abductions.”

“Who?”

“The guy from the club.”

“Oh… him.” Kate furrowed her eyebrows. “Do you think that’s why he was there? Looking for targets?”

“Possibly… or perhaps he knew that we were looking into the disappearances and wanted to know how we were getting on. He must have known that Bryce was a detective, so when he saw him with Millie…”

“Have you told Bryce about this?”

Hailey nodded. “Jean did.”

“OK… I’ll keep an eye open at the club tonight. If he comes back, I’ll telephone and let you know.”

A smile passed between them, before Hailey opened the door and they poked their heads inside. Both women frowned at the sight of Christina crouching in front of the cupboard where the gun was kept. She whirled around as she heard the door opening, twisting her features into the most innocent expression she could manage.

“What were you doing?”

“Nothing.” Christina denied immediately.

Kate didn’t look convinced, but motioned towards the door anyway. “Come on, then. Let’s get going… things to do. See you later, Hailey.”

As soon as they’d left, Hailey crossed to the cupboard and opened it warily. To her immense relief, the gun was exactly where she’d put it before leaving Christina alone in the room. Deciding not to mention the incident to Jean when she returned, Hailey started on dinner.

The stew was almost ready when the sound of the key in the front door made Hailey smile. She didn’t pause in setting the table, although her smile broadened at the feeling of a hand on her hip and lips on her cheek. When Jean moved away, immediately filling the kettle to make her customary post-work, pre-dinner cup of tea, her girlfriend leant against the counter and watched.

“Good day?”

“The usual.” Jean informed her simply. “Apart from the visit I received from Detective Bryce. Daniel Brooker has an alibi for two of the abductions, so he can’t be our man.”

“But… that can’t be right? Why else would he be hanging around the club?”

“Coincidence.” Her girlfriend shrugged. She stood in front of her, sliding her hands around to the small of Hailey’s back. “Perhaps he _has_ taken a fancy to Kate, after all?”

“There’s something about this that doesn’t sit right.” Hailey persisted, placing her hands on Jean’s upper arms absentmindedly. “My gut is telling me that he’s right in the middle of all of this.” Moving to the table where she’d left the lists of names she’d found Brooker’s on, the young woman ran her finger down them thoughtfully. “Oh…”

“Hailey?”

Pressing a quick kiss to her girlfriend’s lips, she headed for the door, trying not to notice the expression on Jean’s face as she went. “There’s something I want to check out with Archie. I’ll be back soon. Don’t forget we’re babysitting Christina tonight.”

Not waiting for an answer, she rushed out of the house and headed down the street in the direction of the club. She was sure that Brooker had something to do with the disappearances and something she’d heard a while before came flooding back to her. Suddenly things started making sense and she had a good idea of what was going on.

“Archie? Have you seen that Brooker guy?” She demanded, leaning heavily on the bar in the Big Bop club.

“Not since the other day. Why?”

“No reason…”

She grinned, before turning tail and heading out of the building, wondering where to head next. The decision was taken out of her hands as the man she was looking for literally bumped into her.

“Do you know James Michelson?” She demanded, not bothering with any form of pre-amble.

“Who?”

“James Michelson? He works at the mayor’s office and he used to work for Doctor Charles Logan. He knows Kate Chamberlain, too.”

Brooker’s mouth twitched, giving him away immediately and Hailey nodded triumphantly. Before she could move, he lashed out, knocking her backwards into the wall and jamming his forearm against her throat, choking her.

Hailey struggled, attempting to kick and punch at him, but he was too strong. Her eyes widened as he raised something, which looked suspiciously like a rock, in his hand, bringing down on the side of her head with a sickening crunch.

* * *

“Iris said that this is the best place to pick up decent clothes at discount prices.” Kate told the teenager distractedly, looking at the scrap of paper that her friend had written the shop’s name on. “I’m sorry it’s got to be discount, but our wages won’t really stretch much further at the moment.”

“It’s fine, Kate.” Christina assured her with a smile. “I understand.”

“I wish you didn’t have to.”

Nodding her head towards the doors, Kate led the way towards them with a plan of action firmly in her mind. She had never been a big fan of shopping and now she barely had any money to do so it seemed like even more of a difficult prospect.

“Kate Chamberlain!”

Confusion twisted the woman’s face at the male voice calling her name. Glancing at Christina, she turned to look at the person shouting at her and her heart sank as she recognised him instantly.

“What do you want?” She demanded, trying to usher her daughter into the shop away from him.

“This is your last chance to take me up on my offer.”

“I’ve already told you it’s never going to happen.”

“Then I can make things very difficult.” He threatened. “I know things about you and I’ve got evidence. Putting that information in the wrong hands could make your life very unpleasant.”

“You don't know anything.”

The man reached out and wrapped his hand around her upper arm, yanking her forwards and pushing his face into hers. “You’re going to be very sorry you underestimated me. I’m going to make you pay.”

“I’d like to see you try.” Kate snapped, pulling herself free.

Grasping Christina firmly by the hand, she marched them both into the shop, trying to hide how shaken she was by the encounter. Ignoring the curious glances they were drawing, she forced herself to carry on as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

“Kate… Mother?”

“That was nothing, sweetheart.” Kate informed her with a quick, empty smile. “Come on, let’s get you some new clothes and get home before I’m late for work.”

Christina nodded and complied, allowing herself to be dragged around the shop and furnished with several new outfits before they headed to the desk to pay. Kate spotted an advertisement for sales assistants, offering more money than Archie could afford to pay her, beside the till and sent Christina to wait by the doors while she spoke to someone about it.

The teenager nodded and wandered towards the entrance with the shopping bags. She leant against the wall outside for a moment, before a scuffling sound and a shout from the alleyway to her left caught her attention. Without thinking, Christina headed in the direction of the noise, her eyes widening as a loud bang filled her ears.

Breaking into a run, the girl rounded a corner before skidding to a halt. A figure lay on the ground, a pool of blood slowly extending from underneath him. Her feet took her forward without her permission and she saw the gun on the ground. Without thinking, Christina bent and picked it up, looking at it as though unsure what it was.

There were footsteps behind her and Kate appeared, her eyes wide and terrified. She took in the sight of her daughter standing as still as a statue, an old handgun hanging limply from her hand. Dropping her gaze to the lifeless body of the man who’d been harassing her less than an hour before, a gunshot wound to his chest and a thin line of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, Kate swallowed thickly.

“Kate…” Christina turned wide eyes on her pleadingly. “I…”

Before anything else could be said, the pounding of feet on concrete alerted them to other people rushing to see what was happening. Grabbing the gun from Christina without a second thought, Kate sent her a warning look, before holding up her hand in acquiescence as a police officer ordered her to put the gun down. She crouched to put the weapon on the floor, being grabbed roughly before she was able to straighten up.

“Wait!” Christina argued, trying to pull the men away from her. “It wasn’t–”

“I shot him.” Kate said firmly, her voice loud and even. “It was me.”

“No, Mother, please, you–”

Not meeting the teenager’s eyes, Kate allowed herself to be pulled in the direction of the waiting police car. It was only when the door was about to be slammed shut behind her, that she blocked it, leaning out and looking at Christina seriously.

“Go home. Millie will look after you. It’s all going to be alright.”

* * *

“Millie? Millie!” Christina threw herself at the brunette, burying her face in her shoulder.

Blinking in complete bewilderment, Millie rubbed her back soothingly for a moment, before disentangling herself and looking at her closely. “Whatever’s the matter, darling?”

“Kate’s been arrested!”

“What?” Millie laughed disbelievingly. “You can’t be serious?”

“I am!” The teenager wailed.

She gave Millie a hurried, messy, jumbled account of what had happened, her words punctuated by sobs. It was so garbled that Millie really had no idea what the girl was trying to tell her. For a while, she let her talk until, finally, Christina trailed off into weak snuffles.

“Let’s try again, shall we, darling?” She suggested gently, receiving a small nod in response. “Why has Kate been arrested?”

“They think she killed someone.”

“What? Why on earth would they ever think that?”

“She…” Christina took a stuttering breath, “there was a man. He… he was shouting at her when we went shopping; saying such awful things to her. She said it was nothing.” When Millie opened her mouth to interrupt, Christina shook her head. “There was a job advertisement and she wanted to ask about it, so I went to wait outside. I heard something from an alleyway and couldn’t resist going to see. Then… the man from before was on the ground. I… I picked up the gun beside him. Then Kate came… she saw the gun and snatched it off me. Then the police came and she–”

“She thought it was you…” Millie’s eyes went wide as the realisation washed over her. She thought you’d shot him and was trying to protect you. But why on earth would she jump to such a ridiculous conclusion? Where would you even have got a gun _from_?”

“I wasn’t supposed to tell you…”

“ _What_ weren’t you supposed to tell me, Christina?”

The teenager bit her lip. “Hailey showed me a gun they found the other day. Kate was annoyed, but I told her that I would have just taken it anyway. I suppose she thought I had.”

“But you didn’t–?”

“I didn’t take the gun.” Christina promised, shaking her head vehemently. “I didn’t shoot anyone.”

“Well of course you didn’t.” Millie rubbed her forehead agitatedly before pulling the girl back into her arms. “Neither did Kate, but if she’s confessed…?” She shook her head. “Who was this man? Did he know Kate?”

Christina nodded, stepping back. “He must have done. He was calling her by her name and saying he knew all about her. What did he mean?”

“I’m not sure. Did she tell you who he was? Did she say his name?”

“No… I don’t know!” She bit her lip agitatedly. “What’s going to happen?”

Glancing at the terrified teenager standing opposite her, Millie sucked in a breath. “You’re going to go to Aunt Jean and Hailey. I’ll go to the police station and see if they'll let me see Kate. If she knows that you had nothing to do with it and don’t need protecting, she’ll change her story.”

She picked up the receiver of the telephone, forcing herself to stay calm. When her call was answered, she could immediately tell that Jean was worried about something. When she heard that Hailey had left, apparently to go in search of the suspect, Millie felt sick to her stomach. Quickly telling her friend what Christina had told her, they came up with a new plan and agreed to meet at the police station.

“Change of plan, you’re going to Aunt Iris’.” Millie informed Christina calmly. “I’ll drop you on my way to see the police.”

“But I–”

“Everything will be fine, darling.” The brunette promised her, stroking a hand through her hair. “You don’t need to worry.”


	7. Chapter 7

When Jean had walked into the Big Bop, she’d expected to see her girlfriend. There was no sign of Hailey anywhere, however, and Archie had informed her that she had popped in for about two minutes to ask him about Brooker, but then headed off again straight away. Frowning with confusion, Jean had absentmindedly thanked him before starting off to meet Millie at the police station.

She didn’t make it further than the car park, spotting a familiar shoe snagged in one of the scrubby bushes lining the fence. Picking it up, she looked around for any sign of its owner, fear coursing through her as she still couldn't see Hailey anywhere. Clutching the shoe to her chest, Jean rushed back into the club and asked to use the telephone.

Sensing her concern, Archie didn’t ask any questions, his eyebrows narrowing as Jean called Iris and asked whether Hailey was there. As she listened to the reply, his eyes dropped to the shoe warily. He’d put two and two together before the Scot had even ended the call and explained what she was afraid of.

Telling her he’d go looking for Hailey in the blocks around the club, Archie asked her to let him know if there was any news from the police station. Jean nodded, hoping that Hailey had gone there although she doubted it, considering she was missing a shoe.

“Millie?” Jean stared at her friend, noting the venomous glare she was sending at the police officer standing with her and the way she was clenching her hands into fists at her sides. “What’s going on?”

“They won’t let me see Kate!”

“Ma’am, she’s admitted to murder. We can’t just–”

“She didn’t do it!” Millie exploded. “I keep trying to tell you!”

“Millie…” Jean gently directed her towards the chairs along the far wall, pushing her into one and sitting beside her. She cupped her best friend’s cheeks gently, forcing her to meet her eyes. “If you start creating merry hell they’re not going to let you talk to her. You need to calm down.”

“Jean! She thinks she needs to protect Christina. Who knows what she’s telling them.”

“Have you seen Detective Bryce?”

“Not yet; he’s out somewhere.” Millie noticed her friend clutching a shoe and frowned. “Did you find Hailey?”

“No… I think something’s happened to her.” Jean admitted, her voice cracking slightly.

“What?” The younger woman breathed, horror etching itself over her expression. “Jean? How? When?”

“Archie says that she was only with him for a couple of minutes before she left. She was asking about Brooker. I found this outside…”

“Oh, darling…” Millie put her head in her hands. “This is all such a big mess. Do you think… could the murder and Hailey’s disappearance be linked?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, Christina said that Kate and the dead man knew each other; that she didn’t seem to want to talk to him but that he said he knew all about her. Hailey went looking for Brooker and now she’s vanished.”

“Do we know who the dead man is?”

Millie shook her head. “They won’t tell me anything. I was hoping Olivia might be able to find something out, but she’s not here either.”

“Do you have any idea who it might be?” Jean pressed. “Hailey looked at the list of Logan’s employees and colleagues again, before she went to find Brooker. I think she recognised a name…”

“What name?”

“I don’t know… Who would go after Kate like that?” She paused, remembering a conversation she’d had with her girlfriend. “Hang on… what about the man who got Kate sacked from the Mayor’s office? He tried to blackmail her into sleeping with him–”

“He did _what_?” Millie was incandescent with rage at the information, physically shaking with fury. “Why the bloody hell didn’t she tell me?”

“Because she didn’t want you to get upset, dear. She obviously didn’t think it was a threat she needed to take seriously.”

“But she told you?”

“No, Hailey told me.” Jean replied calmly. “She said that he followed them to the club that they like to go to and said he’d tell people who Kate really was if she didn’t sleep with him.” Jean admitted with a sigh. “If it is him, if he’s the dead man, it’s not looking particularly good for Kate.”

“What do you mean?”

“Even if she changes her plea, they’ll be able to show a plausible motive for her to have killed him.”

“The stupid, idiotic, bloody fool!” Millie exclaimed passionately. “She didn’t need to say it! She didn’t need to protect Christina, because she didn’t do it either.”

“Sadly, I think her confession just made their job easier. If our suspicions are correct, Kate would have been number one suspect anyway due to their history and her presence at the crime scene.”

Her friend let out a shaky breath. “How can we fight this? She’s innocent. How can we prove it?”

“We need to talk to Detective Bryce and find out exactly what’s going on.” Jean said, sitting stiffly in the chair. “If the dead man is linked to Brooker and the abductions, then that would mean that it’s highly likely that Hailey’s been taken by the murderer.”

“Jean–”

“Detective Bryce.” The Scot cut across her, standing and approaching the man who had just entered the lobby.

“I’ve just heard.” He told her, seeing the expressions on both women’s faces. “I don’t know anything yet, but I’ll find out.”

“Hailey’s missing.” Jean said before he could walk away from them. “She went looking for Brooker and never came back. I found her shoe outside Archie’s club.”

“Why was she looking for Brooker?” Bryce asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

“I don’t know! I told her what you said about him having an alibi for two of the abductions and she said she had a gut feeling about him and his involvement.” 

“He’s got her, hasn’t he?” Millie insisted, striding forward to join them. “Brooker. She found him and he’s taken her, just like all those other women.”

“We don’t know that for sure.” Detective Bryce tried to calm her down. “We don’t know anything’s even happened to her.”

“So where is she, then?” Jean demanded, her eyes flashing furiously. “Where is she, with one shoe missing? Why hasn’t she tried to get in contact with anyone?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted, “but there are patrols out looking for her. We’ve sent officers to the addresses linked to the case and we’re sure she’ll turn up safe and sound.”

“And Kate?”

“I’ll speak to the detectives in charge of the case.” Bryce promised, his expression changing almost imperceptibly. “I’ll review what they’ve got so far and see how it’s looking. If I can, I’ll speak to her, too.”

“She’s innocent, Bill.” Millie said softly, pleading with him to believe them. “Kate couldn’t do this. She _wouldn’t_ do it.” She took a breath. “Christina saw the body first. She panicked and picked up the gun and Kate thought people would blame her. Kate was trying to protect her daughter, even though Christina didn’t need protecting because she didn’t have _anything_ to do with it. Will you at least tell Kate that?”

He looked at her for a long moment, before reaching out and squeezing her upper arm. “We’ll work out what’s happened.”

Nodding at Jean, he turned and strode away from them. They stood still, watching until he disappeared from sight, before the older woman turned resolute eyes on her best friend. Millie knew what she was about to suggest before Jean even opened her mouth.

“We need to find him. The police are worse than useless. If we leave it to them, both our girls are doomed.”

Millie nodded in agreement. “Let’s take Hailey’s car to the warehouse.”

“You think he’d have taken her there?”

“He thinks he’s in the clear.” Millie pointed out, already heading out of the building. “He’s got an alibi for two of the disappearances and they’ve discovered the bodies. Where better to go than somewhere that’s already been searched?”

* * *

The detectives had only just left her alone when Kate heard the interview room door creaking open again. She didn’t raise her head from her arms to see who it was, assuming it would be someone to ask her more inane questions that she had no intention of answering, or someone to do as the other officers had threatened and take her down to a cell. She was too weary to even attempt to feign interest in her visitor.

“Miss Chamberlain?”

“Detective Bryce. I’ve got nothing else to say.” Kate told him, reluctantly glancing up at the sound of the familiar voice. He took no notice of her, settling himself into the seat on the opposite side of the table to her. “Even to you.”

“I’ve spoken to Millie.” He told her. Seeing the redhead clenching her jaw, irrational jealousy flooding through her even at that moment, he frowned a little. “She wanted me to tell you that Christina didn’t do anything. You didn’t need to protect her.”

“What?”

“You know lying to the police to protect someone is a crime in itself?”

“Christina didn’t…?”

“No. Why would you think she did?” Bryce asked, wondering whether there was more to it than Millie had told him. Kate hesitated, looking at him suspiciously. “It’s not a trick.”

“When I reached her she was holding the gun.”

“She got there before you?” When, again, she didn’t answer, he sighed. “If Millie believes she’s innocent, that’s good enough for me.”

“She’s thirteen, of course she’s innocent.”

“ _You_ were the one who thought you needed to take the blame.” Bryce reminded her harshly.

“I panicked. It was stupid. Obviously Christina didn’t do it; she’s just a child.” Kate shook her head. “I just… I saw her and the gun and the body. I heard people behind us and there was no time to think logically. I just… reacted.”

“Kate, you need to listen to me.” Bill ordered firmly, catching the scared expression on her face. “Hailey’s missing. Anything you can tell us about–”

“She’s… what?” The redhead’s eyes widened impossibly and she buried her head in her hands. “Hailey’s… no, no, no. You’ve _got_ to get me out of here. I need to help find her.”

“You confessed.” He reminded her, more gently now. “I understand why you confessed, but there’s evidence to say you did this. Your prints on the gun–” Bill help up his hands as she raised her head and opened her mouth to argue. “I know why they’re there and I believe you. But – even disregarding your confession – you've got a motive, an opportunity, the gun provided you with the means and there are a lot of witnesses who are adamant you killed him.”

“I’m in serious trouble, aren’t I?” Kate asked softly. “I’m not getting out of this one.”

“Jean thinks that if we find Hailey, we’ll find the real killer.”

“I… I don’t care about that.” She shook her head and her hair, made wild from the number of times she’d run her fingers through it, flew around her shoulders. “Please just find Hailey before it’s too late.”

“We’ll do everything we can.” Bill promised.

“And I… I need to speak to Millie. Please.”

“I don't think that’s–”

“ _Please_. Just for five minutes.”

He exhaled deeply, apparently trying to work out a way of granting her request. Finally he stood, moving to the door and sending her a sharp nod.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

She didn’t seriously think that he would keep his word. Kate was convinced that she wouldn’t have a chance to speak to her girlfriend before she was charged and sentenced and it would all be too late. Her insides swirled and twisted uncomfortably and she pushed the heels of her palms into her burning eyes to stop the inevitable tears falling.

When the door opened, the redhead looked up hopefully. Her heart sank when the police officer in the doorway smirked at her spitefully and motioned for her to follow him. The click of the cell locking behind him had an air of sickening finality about it and Kate hugged her knees to her chest and rested her forehead against them. She cursed herself for acting so impulsively, for leaping to protect Christina without thinking things through.

“Kate…”

Millie suddenly swept into the cell with all of her usual surety. Kate felt herself letting out the breath she’d been holding since the police had carted her off. Dragging her into a tight embrace, the older woman held her close, grasping the material of her blouse tensely.

“I’m sorry, Millie.” She breathed into the older woman’s neck. “I’m so, so sorry.”

“You’re an idiot.”

“I know.” Kate admitted. “I’m sorry. I spoke to Bryce. He said that they think I’ve got motive, opportunity and means. He said that there are plenty of witnesses saying I did it. I’m in trouble, even without the confession.”

“Motive?”

“I knew the victim… he... he’s the one who got me fired.”

“Jean told me all about that.”

“Millie…”

Cupping her face gently, Millie stroked the pads of her thumbs along Kate’s cheekbones. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll find the truth.”

“Will you look after Christina when–?”

“ _If_.” Millie cut across her harshly. “ _If_ you can’t, of course I’ll look after Christina.”

“Where’s Jean?”

Breaking the tension a little, Millie chuckled. “My company not good enough for you?”

“I really meant _how’s_ Jean.” Kate clarified softly. Tears sprang to her eyes. “I can’t believe…”

“Hailey is going to be fine.” Her girlfriend promised, hugging her tightly. “I would bet good money Brooker has something to do with why you’re in here.”

“I don’t think it’s going to be easy to–”

“Now you listen to me, Kathryn Chamberlain.” The older woman held her at arms length, her eyes narrowing as she regarded her with a serious, determined expression. “We’ll find whoever killed that man and then you can come home and look after your daughter yourself.”

“Millie…”

“Say it.” Millie demanded. “Say that you trust us.”

“I trust you, of course I do.”

With a sigh, Kate pulled Millie in for another hug. She pressed as close as she could to the older woman, knowing that in their current situation she couldn’t get as close as she wanted to. She was longing to kiss her girlfriend, to feel the calm that Millie could always seem to bring to her. But it was impossible and, seconds later, they broke apart as footsteps echoed down the corridor leading to the cells.

“Time’s up, ladies.” The officer who had been charged with keeping an eye on Kate entered the cell and stared pointedly at Millie.

She scowled at him, reluctantly picking up her handbag from the bunk. “I’ll see you soon, darling. Stay strong; we’ll have you out of here in no time.”


	8. Chapter 8

“Is this definitely the place?” Millie asked, wrinkling her nose as she climbed out of Hailey’s car and looked around.

Jean had rolled to a halt in a gravel yard outside a very dilapidated looking warehouse. The paint on the wooden doors was faded and peeling, great chunks missing and making it look entirely uninviting. Not that it would have looked remotely welcoming if the paint had been all there. The smashed windows and weeds creeping up the walls put paid to any notion of that.

“Definitely.” Jean assured her.

“Come on, then.” Her best friend nodded her head decisively towards the building, before striding confidently in the same direction. 

“Wait a moment, Millie.”

Seeing her hesitating, the younger woman narrowed her eyes. “Jean, we can’t  afford to wait a moment. If Hailey is in there, we need to know. Any dithering could lead to a situation that I don’t even want to think  about , let alone risk happening.”

Swallowing thickly, Jean took a breath and started towards the warehouse. She knew what Millie meant; if they wasted time debating the best way to go about entering the building they could be too late to save Hailey. Jean didn’t know what she’d do if she lost the young woman now. She’d been so resistant to the idea of letting Hailey into her heart, but now she was firmly  entrenched and she couldn’t begin to imagine her life without her. 

Pushing at the rotting wood, Millie grimaced as a small chunk came away in her hand. Dropping it, wiping her hand on her  trousers as she did so, she slipped inside the building. Looking around, they started picking their way across the concrete floor, between the tall piles of packing crates that littered the  space . 

Hearing a muffled thud from somewhere ahead, the two women exchanged a look and continued. Each of them was more determined to find their friend and get her out of there in one piece. They were sure that finding Hailey would lead them to the evidence they needed to free Kate. 

“That way… ” Millie murmured, pointing towards the left. 

A sheet of blue plastic was hanging from a metal bar above them, acting as a curtain of sorts. Millie led the way, pushing through the sheeting and wrinkling her nose at the sudden putrid smell that greeted them. Neither wanted to think too much about the cause, focusing on looking for Hailey and getting the three of them out of the warehouse in one piece. 

The thudding sound came again, followed by a low, frustrated groaning sound. Narrowing her eyes, Jean jerked her head in the direction she thought it was coming from. Millie nodded  quickly  in agreement, signalling that they should investigate. 

“Hailey!” Jean spotted her first, bound and gagged and tied to a chair.

She crossed the concrete floor, pressing a hand to her cheek and smiling as Hailey’s eyes fluttered closed for a moment in response. Jean didn’t need Millie’s hissed request for her to hurry up to cause her to jump into action, but it came nevertheless.  Letting out a sound of slight annoyance, Jean began tearing at the knots in the rope holding Hailey in the  seat .

Millie was keeping a lookout  near the pl astic sheeting, while  poking around in search of anything that could prove useful at the same time. She kept one eye on the two women behind her, doing her best to allow them a little privacy for their reconciliation, while trying to signal the urgency of their situation at the same time. 

“Let’s get out of here.” Hailey suggested, her tight grip on Jean’s hand giving away her fear at the situation. 

“Good idea.” Millie agreed, holding up a tatty notebook she’d  uncovered during her search. “I’ m sure Detective Bryce will find this very useful.”

“I’m sure he would… if there was any chance he’d see it.”

All three women turned to find  themselves staring down the barrel of a gun. Daniel  Brooker was advancing on them slowly, a furious scowl twisting his features. Jean tugged on Hailey’s hand, attempting to partially block her from view. The younger woman had other ideas, standing her ground and refusing to let her girlfriend put herself in danger to protect her. Millie glanced sideways, sizing up the situation and wondering whether she’d be able to prevent eith er of her friends getting hurt i f the situation escalated. 

“Put the gun down.”

“Why would I do that?” He laughed. 

“You’ve already shot one person today,” Millie pointed out, going with her hunch, “it’ll be worse if you make it more.”

“Says who? They won’t pin that on me. Your friend is going to go down for that; the police are so sure they’ve got their murderer.” He chuckled nastily. “I couldn’t believe my luck when the kid picked up the gun and then Kate actually admitted to shooting him!”

“W ait… what?” Hailey turned wide, disbelieving eyes on the other women. “What is he talking about?”

“Kate’s been arrested for murder.” Millie informed her hastily , her eyes not leaving  Brooker , even for a second . “It’s a long story; we’ll fill you in properly later.”

“Really, this couldn’t have happened to a better woman... her sort deserve whatever’s coming to them.”

Millie’s eyes blazed. “What do you mean by  her sort ?”

“It’s unnatural.” He continued. “James tried to do her a favour, to show her what she was missing out on. I was  gonna offer to show Hailey here, before you two turned up.”

Jean felt sick to her stomach at the implication of his words. She  tightened her grip on her girlfriend ’ s hand instinctively. “You do realise the police are on their way?”

“No, they’re not.” He replied assuredly. “If they were they’d have been here b y now. No, it’s just you three… and you’re not going anywhere.”

“How can you be sure?”  Millie inquired evenly . 

“Because they wouldn’t have let you two come in here alone.”

Hailey snorted, unable to stop herself. “You think they could have stopped them?”

“Daniel, this is pointless.  Detective Bryce knows where we are. He knew we were coming here looking for you and do you really think he’d be able to stay away if he thought we might find you?” Mille reasoned, taking half a step towards him and holding out a hand. “Just give me the gun and–”

He narrowed his eyes and they found themselves in a standoff, neither blinking as they stared each other out. Millie jutted out her jaw stubbornly, refusing to break the glare even when she felt Jean’s hand tighten around her upper arm. 

She was about to open her mouth to speak again when a loud noise from somewhere behind them alerted their attention to the back of the warehouse. There was no time to react, let alone move, as police officers streamed into the space and started shouting at  B r ooker to lower the weapon.

Several loud bangs broke across the confused sounds and Jean dragged Millie backwards to stand with her and Hailey out of harm’s way. A couple of the officers dropped to the ground as bullets from  B r ooker’s gun met their mark, before he was tackled to the  floor and the weapon wrestled from his grip.

“Bill!” The relief in Millie’s voice was obvious as her eyes fell on the detective , striding along at the back of the group .

He only paused briefly, to speak to the officer who had apprehended  Brooker , as he crossed the warehouse floor towards the three women. Barely sparing Hailey a second glance as he ascertained that she was  alright , his eyes fixed on Millie, checking for any sign that she was injured.

“I’m fine.” She waved off his concern, holding out the notebook she’d found. “Here… this will be enough to prove Kate’s innocent, won’t it?”

He flicked through the pages slowly, his eyes taking in the dates and times – including evidence that he had been  involved in the murder that Kate was currently being held for. Pausing thoughtfully, he seemed to consider whether the information would be enough to ensure that the redhead would be freed. Jean and Hailey exchanged a look, wondering why he hadn’t immediately agreed with Millie’s assumption.

“I’m not sure.” He admitted at last.  “This doesn’t actually prove that he committed the murder, just that he was aware of it.  He could still argue that it was  Miss Chamberlain who pulled the trigger … that they were working together. ”

“Bill–”

“The only concrete way to ensure that she goes free is to secure a confession from  B r ooker .”

“What if he won’t?” It was Hailey who asked the question, her voice small and unsure. She looked between the two older women helplessly, seeing similar fears reflected back at her. “There’s surely got to be something else we can do.”

“Leave it to us.” The detective cautioned them seriously.  “If there’s anything to find, we’ll find it.” Seeing  their unimpressed, disbelieving expressions he sighed. “Can I give you ladies a lift home?”

“We’ve got the car.” Jean informed him bluntly, assuming that  either  Millie or Hailey was about to say something slightly, or incredibly, rude in response.  “We’ll be fine, thank you.”

Mercifully, they remained silent until they were safely in Hailey’s car.  She had resolutely refused to let them take her to the hospital, pointing out that she only had a few cuts and bruises and she’d rather Jean treat them anyway. Sighing, her girlfriend grudgingly agreed and headed for their home instead.

“Should we go and pick up Christina?”

Millie exhaled sharply. “We have to… but I don’t know what to tell her. I said that  everything would be fine and she didn’t need to worry. How can that be true if we have no idea whether Kate will…?”

“Have faith, Millie.” Jean ordered, clenching her jaw and refusing to let herself think any differently. “Kate’s innocent and the truth will come out.”

“Quickly, I hope.”

Nodding, not making any comment, she headed towards the Fillmore to pick up the teenager from Iris’ apartment. Hailey distracted Christina while the other two filled their friend in with what was happening with Kate and Brooker. Iris looked on the verge of crying with relief at the knowledge that Hailey was safe and sound, although the worry that they all felt about the outcome of the situation wasn’t far off.

Deciding that there was nothing they could do that evening and knowing that they needed to get the teenager home as soon as possible, the women took their leave, promising to  meet up again in the morning. If nothing else, they could go to the police station and annoy Detective Bryce and the other officers until they found something  useful  out.

“Is Mum home?” As the trio  of women  exchanged looks over her head, Christina realised the truth and huffed loudly. “Aunt Mill i e, you said–”

“I know, darling.” The brunette let her eyes slip closed, grateful that the teenager was sitting behind her and couldn’t see her face.  “I know I said that it would be  alright and it will. But it’s taking a little more time than we thought.”

“So she’s still locked up?”

“I’m afraid so.” Jean agreed softly.  “But Detective Bryce will be making sure they’re taking very good care of her.  Your mother will be absolutely fine.”

  
“Will she.” Christina muttered, slumping back against the seat and turning her head to stare out of the window into the darkness.

They drove the rest of the way in silence. When they arrived at Jean and Hailey’s house, they suggested that Millie and Christina share the spare bed, rather than going home. The teenager had just shrugged and wandered in the direction of the offered room.

Hailey held up a hand as Millie started after her, popping into her bedroom and finding a suitable pair of pyjamas, before knocking on the door and waiting to hear the girl c all her in. After a moment or two, the doorknob twisted and Christina’s face appeared in the gap between the door and the frame. She sighed when she saw who was outside, but stood back and allowed Hailey to enter without complaint.

“Here  ya go.” The young woman tried to be upbeat, handing over the pyjamas and smiling warmly. “They’ll be a bit big, but hopefully they’ re OK. ”

“What do you think is going to happen to Mum?” Christina asked, completely ignoring the sleepwear and turning to her new friend seriously. “Aunt Millie and Aunt Jean will lie to me to protect me, but you’ll tell me the truth, right, Hailey? Do you really think it’s going to be  alright , or is she going to…? Are they going to  give her the death penalty? ”

“What? Christina, no!” Hailey shook her head vehemently, her eyes widening in horror. “No way! That’s not going to happen.”

“I’ve just got her back, Hailey. I can’t lose her again straight away.”

Settling herself, almost gingerly, on the bed, Hailey patted the mattress beside her and indicated that the teenager should sit beside her. “ I only know what I’ve been told about… what happened. I can’t imagine what it must have been like for you to find out the truth.”

“Kate was my favourite relative.” Christina told her, sniffling slightly.  “I thought she was my aunt, but I always loved her the most. Sometimes I’d hear her arguing with Moth– Aunt Josephine and I knew it was about me. I thought she was just sticking up for me because we were so similar.  But it was really because she was my mum and she loved me.”

“Of course she loves you.” Hailey fought the urge to roll her eyes. “She admitted to murder to protect you.”

“But I didn’t–”

“We know that and so does she. But that doesn’t help with–”

“Is it really bad, Hailey?”

“It’s not great.” She admitted, wrapping her arm around the thirteen-year-old and pulling her into a one-armed hug. “But  your mum is a tough cookie and  we’re going to sort it. It’ll all work out. ”


	9. Chapter 9

“Christina thinks Kate’s going to get the death penalty.”

Jean and Millie looked up, completely horrified, at Hailey’s words as she took a seat at the table and looked between them. The young woman immediately took in the considerably fuller ashtray, the empty teacups and the crumpled newspaper. All three signs clearly indicated that the two Brits were understandably agitated and distracted.

“I should go and reassure her.” Millie decided instantly, standing up and fixing her eyes on the door that separated them from the teenager.

Hailey stopped her with a light touch on the forearm. “She’s asleep. Leave her be for now.” The look the brunette shot her was almost enough for the young woman to hold her hands up defensively. “I know you’re–”

“What if she’s right?”

Jean’s head whipped around at the quiet question. “Millie, dear, that’s not going to happen.”

“But–”

“I think we should get some sleep and go back to the police station in the morning.” The eldest of the trio suggested firmly. “None of us are in a state to come up with anything sensible at the moment and Hailey needs some rest.” Sensing that her girlfriend was about to complain about her assessment, she shook her head. “What, realistically, can we do now?”

Reluctantly realising that she was correct, the other two said goodnight before separating. As Hailey and Jean retreated to their bedroom, Millie smiled weakly as she caught the expression that passed between them. She couldn’t begrudge their reunion, but the pain in her chest, as she remembered where Kate was, hurt all the more.

* * *

The hours passed incredibly slowly in the incredibly bleak, cramped cell. Kate was restless, switching between pacing the floor and sitting cross-legged on the hard bunk fidgeting with loose threads in the hem of her blouse. Detective Bryce had poked his head into the cell and told her that they’d arrested Brooker, only revealing that Hailey was alive and well when prompted.

Kate sighed as he closed the door once more. She knew that Bryce didn’t particularly like her; she assumed that he knew she was the reason why Millie wouldn’t go out with him, although she severely doubted that he had any idea of the real reason. She just hoped that he was as good a detective as Millie and the others thought and would put his personal feelings about her aside to solve the case.

An officer opened the door briefly to give her a drink. He stood and watched her for a moment, Kate curling in on herself on the bunk and refusing to meet his eyes as he stood in the doorway. She felt grubby under his gaze, realising that he probably thought that he knew more about her than she would like. She wondered whether Brooker had said anything of interest in his interview, already having worked out that he must have had something to do with the murder that she was under suspicion of carrying out.

“Women like you–”

The officer was cut off by a voice from the corridor behind him. Instead of continuing, he gave a derisive snort and slammed the cell door. Kate put her head in her hands and tried to ignore the burning behind her eyelids and the sharp prickling of tears that threatened to fall. Her chest was tight and she knew that she didn’t have much chance of clearing her name, particularly if they decided to believe whatever they’d heard instead of what she could tell them.

There was no way of telling how much time was passing while she was in the cell. After a while, she lay down on the bunk and stared up at the ceiling sightlessly. Kate was sure she must have dozed off a couple of times, but she had no idea how long for. It was a strange sensation, disorientating, a feeling that seemed to make her even more unsettled than the current situation.

Finally there was the rattle of keys and a metallic clunk that signalled that someone was about to enter the cell. She flinched at the sound, before pulling herself up to sit against the wall, wrapping her arms around her knees and staring apprehensively ahead of her. Dropping her gaze to the tiled floor when the detective entered and smiled nastily at her, she waited to hear what was going to be thrown at her next.

“Come on, Miss Chamberlain. We’ve got a few more questions for you.”

Wearily, she followed the officers from the cell and along the corridor. From the light levels, she guessed it was relatively late in the morning or even early afternoon; a realisation that caused her stomach to rumble angrily. The detective closest looked at her and chuckled, not offering to get her anything to eat or drink as he ushered her into yet another stark interview room.

“Take a seat, please.”

Exhaling deeply, Kate did as she was ordered, resting both elbows on the table and propping her chin up on one hand. She was unsurprised when the officers left the room and closed the door firmly behind them, assuming they’d gone to inform Detective Bryce or whoever else was working the case that she was ready to answer their questions.

There was a long wait before the door opened again. Kate had almost dozed off, tired of sitting around and waiting for anything to happen, when there was a low creak and footsteps caused her to jerk her head upwards and see who was approaching.

Bill settled himself opposite her, flipping open a file. “Miss Chamberlain, I hope you managed to get some sleep.”

“Not really.” She replied bluntly. “What time is it?”

“Nearly two o’clock.”

“How much longer are you intending to keep me here?”

“Do you realise the severity of your situation?” He asked, leaning forward and looking at her carefully. “Brooker’s talking. He’s explained your link to Eric Michelson far more comprehensively than you did.”

“I don’t see how.” Kate replied bluntly. “I worked with Michaelson, he harassed me about a date, I said no. What more is there to say?”

“You do realise that Brooker telling us more than you did makes you look even more guilty?”

“I didn’t do it.”

“It’s a good job Brooker confessed, then.”

Kate gaped at him. From the rest of the conversation she had been expecting the detective to tell her that she was still the main suspect, that there was no chance they’d get the man to confess and she was looking at a death sentence. Opening and closing her mouth wordlessly a few times, she tried to understand what was happening. Kate wasn’t entirely sure that she had heard correctly.

“He… he confessed?”

“He did.”

“So…?”

“He’ll be charged for Michelson’s murder, as well as being an accessory to the others.”

“The officers said that you had more questions for me.”

“That was before we got the confession.”

Kate leant back in her seat, exhaling sharply. “So… I can go?”

“Not just yet.” Bill shook his head. “There are a few more things to iron out… about what Brooker told us.”

“Can I at least have a cigarette?” She requested tiredly.

Detective Bryce considered her for a moment, before reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out a pack and a lighter. Kate lit up with shaking hands, letting her eyes slip closed as she took a long, deep drag.

* * *

Millie had been up since the crack of dawn. She had left Christina with Jean and Hailey and headed over to the police station as soon as it was reasonable. Her plan was to badger the officers until they told her what she wanted to know and to make sure they were doing everything possible to get a confession from Brooker and release Kate.

“Millie… we’re doing what we can.” Bill sighed as he spotted her sitting in the reception area with her arms folded and a scowl on her face.

“But you’re not doing enough.”

“She confessed!” He pointed out exasperatedly. “Sure, she’s taken it back now, but she did confess initially.”

“But Kate is innocent.”

Folding his arms and frowning at her, the detective shrugged. “I’m going to speak to Brooker again now. I can’t tell you anything, but I’m working on it, OK?”

“I know Kate.” Millie pressed, her eyes pleading. “She’s my friend. I trust her. I know she’s not capable of murder.”

“People can surprise us.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” The brunette almost exploded. “I thought you believed her.”

“The evidence–”

“The evidence is circumstantial at best.” Millie snapped. “Kate wouldn’t do this. She didn’t do it. You’re wrong.”

Bill shook his head and started walking away. “I’ll speak to her.”

Trembling with fury, Millie clenched her hands into fists and dropped into her seat once more. She refused to leave the station until either Kate was able to leave with her or she at least had assurances that her girlfriend would be able to go home soon, completely cleared of any charges that might have been brought against her.

“Are you still here?”

“Of course I’m still here.” Millie snapped, scowling at Detective Bryce as he approached her. He had shed his jacket and his arms were folded over his chest again. He looked much wearier than he had done earlier, something that filled Millie with a perverse sense of smugness. “I’m not leaving until I know that Kate’s going to be released.”

“Well she is, alright?” Bill informed her with a shrug.

“She is? Now?”

“Not right now; in a couple of hours.”

“But she’s definitely going to be released with no charge?” Millie pressed, needing clarification. “This is the end of it.”

“This is the end of it.” He agreed with a nod. “Can I give you a lift home?”

Considering for a moment, Millie eventually nodded and gathered her things. She followed the detective out to his car and climbed in beside him. Bill talked about nothing in particular as they drove, but Millie mostly blocked out his words, deep in thought.

“Can we go via Jean’s?” Millie requested suddenly, starting slightly as she recognised the streets they were driving through. “I need to pick Christina up on my way home.”

“Can… can I ask about Christina?” Bill asked, chancing a look at the brunette as he changed course and headed down a side street.

“You could,” she agreed with a weary sigh, “but I wouldn’t, if I were you.”

“I just… after what I’ve found out I don’t understand how–”

“Christina is Kate’s daughter.” Millie said bluntly. “She’s been living with her aunt in London while Kate got settled.”

“But if she’s… if she prefers…?”

Millie arched an eyebrow. “Brooker made some wild accusations about Kate to us, too, in that warehouse.” She snorted derisively. “Don’t believe everything a murderer tells you, Bill. Surely they teach you that before you become a detective?”

They lapsed into silence as they approached Jean and Hailey’s address. Bill was clearly thinking over what Millie had said, while she was stewing over his comments and the clumsy way he’d gone about attempting to trick her into confirming whatever Brooker had told him. She had no doubts that Kate wouldn’t have said anything remotely damning, knowing that it wouldn't just be herself she was casting suspicions over.

“Thank you for the lift.” Millie said stiffly. “We can walk from here.”

“Don’t be silly, I’ll take you the rest of the way. At least I’ll know you’ve got home safely.”

Shrugging, Millie slipped out of the car and strode towards the front door. She waited impatiently for her knock to be answered, smiling at Hailey as she pulled open the door and stared out questioningly. Not seeing her best friend on the porch the smile dropped a little, but Millie was quick to assure her that Bryce had promised Kate would be released soon.

When Christina appeared, she took the brunette by surprise, throwing her arms around her in a tight hug. Millie returned it immediately, resting her chin on the top of the teenager’s head and catching Jean’s eyes as she did so. The Scot smiled fondly at the pair, before making Millie promise to let them know if there were any developments.

“Is she home?” Christina asked as they walked slowly towards the waiting car.

Millie shook her head sadly, squeezing the hand in hers. “Not yet; later, I hope.”

“Why is it taking so long? Hailey told me you found evidence and they arrested the real murderer.”

Internally cursing the young woman and her big mouth, Millie jerked her shoulders in a small shrug. “There were things they needed to check.” Opening the back door of the car, she motioned for the girl to climb in. “Christina, this is Detective Bryce. He’s been helping to sort things out and get your mum home.”

“Hello.”

“Very pleased to meet you, Miss…”

“Chamberlain.” Christina informed him immediately, not missing the small, tender smile that appeared on the brunette woman’s face at her adoption of Kate’s surname. “Aunt Millie says Mum should be home later, is that right?”

“All being well.” He agreed, slightly awkwardly.

The journey around the block to Millie’s house only took a matter of minutes and before they knew it they had pulled up outside. Christina was out of the car straight away, only just remembering her manners and thanking the detective for the lift, before she was rushing away towards the front door.

“She’s in a hurry.” Bill attempted to lighten the atmosphere, following Millie’s slower walk up the path. “Something I said?”

“She’s looking forward to her mother coming home. Wouldn’t you be?”

“Millie, I–”

“Can I have the key, please?” Christina asked, turning and holding out a hand in Millie’s direction.

“Here you go, darling.”

He waited as the woman handed over her keys and watched the teenager letting herself inside. They heard footsteps on the stairs and the sound of the key in the lock of the door to Millie’s apartment. When the brunette made to step inside, Bill followed her.

“Millie… you need to be careful.” He cautioned in a low voice. “Brooker had a lot to say about Kate and her… proclivities. Sharing an apartment with her and her daughter… aspersions will start to be cast.”

“I don’t give two hoots about any of that.” Millie informed him angrily. “I’ve known Kate for most of my life… for _all_ of hers. She is my friend and you’d do well to remember that. In fact, they’re my family; Kate, Christina, Jean… they’re my _family_.”

As she stopped speaking, glaring at him furiously, Bill moved forward and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her, one hand sliding up her back to cup the back of her head.

Time seemed to slow down for the brunette. She saw what was about to happen but was powerless to stop it. For a split second Millie froze, unable to believe that he had misread the situation so spectacularly, before placing both her hands on his chest and shoving him off her.

“A-Aunt Millie?”


	10. Chapter 10

Millie froze, her hand still on Bill’s chest as she continued to push him away. Dreading the expression she was going to see on the teenager’s face when she turned to look at her, Millie took a deep, settling breath. The reality was worse than her expectation; an intense betrayal, hurt and disappointment was etched over Christina’s features as she leant over the banisters and blinked down at Millie in confusion.

“Darling, listen…”

“You’re supposed to be trying to help my Mum!” Christina reminded her accusingly. “But instead you’re… you’re doing _this_?”

“Christina, darling, you’ve got this completely–”

“Millie! Do you even care that she’s locked up? They have the death penalty over here, don’t they?”

“Listen, whatever’s happening between myself and Miss Harcourt it’s not going to affect how hard she’s fighting for her friend.” Bill attempted to placate the girl, stepping forward and holding up his hands. “Not that it’s any of your business, or your place to comment, anyway.”

Christina sent him a withering look. It was remarkable how much she resembled Kate in that moment. “Right.”

“Darling, listen to me.” Millie almost pleaded, moving up the staircase and reaching for her. She felt her heart clench painfully when the teenager shook her off and took several steps backwards. “We’re going to bring your mum home and then we’ll talk about this. The most important thing at the moment is making sure this is sorted.”

“When will that be?” She demanded. “Does he even _want_ Mum to be released?”

“Christina!” Millie was shocked by her question. “Of course Detective Bryce wants her to be released. He knows she’s innocent.”

“Then I want to go now. I want to go and get her, right now.”

As both women turned to look at him, Bill held up his hands and shrugged. “I’m not promising anything, but I’ll see what I can do.”

* * *

Kate rubbed her forehead tiredly. Quite a while after Detective Bryce had left, another detective appeared in the interview room and started asking her questions. She guessed that they were linked to what Brooker had told them, knowing that they had nothing to substantiate what he’d said and that they were trying to get her to confirm it. Why they were remotely interested in her anyway, she had no idea.

“How long have you been in San Francisco, Miss Chamberlain?”

“About six months.”

“And why did you come here?”

“I decided I’d quite like a change of scenery.” She informed him casually, signalling that she wasn’t remotely interested in the conversation with a shrug. “There was nothing keeping me in London and I thought I’d come and stay with a friend over here for a while.”

“Miss Harcourt?”

“Yes. We’ve been friends for years.”

“And you have a daughter?”

Kate tilted her chin upwards defiantly. “Yes. Once I was settled here, she came to join me.”

“But you’re not married.”

“No.” She arched an eyebrow. “It’s hardly an impossible situation to be in, is it?”

“A little unorthodox, perhaps?” The detective suggested, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. “Particularly for someone with your background.”

“Not that it’s _any_ of your business but Christina’s father was killed in the war, before I realised I was expecting her. I never even had the chance to tell him… I could have taken his name and pretended we’d been married, but I didn’t see much point. So, as I said, there was nothing keeping us in London.”

“So you came here.” He paused, as though expecting some kind of response, but Kate merely stared at him. “What have you been doing for the past six months?”

“You are, no doubt, aware that I was abducted in late September?” When he made no attempt to agree or disagree, she shrugged. “After I recovered, I’ve been attempting to find work. It’s been difficult, but I need to be able to provide for my daughter.”

“Why have you been finding it difficult?”

Kate arched an eyebrow. “What is this about? I don’t see how any of this is remotely relevant to what’s happened.”

“Some claims were made that need to be followed up.”

“What claims?”

“Claims about the company you keep.”

“Right… well, as that is in no way any of your business and I’ve already been told the charges against me have been dropped, I would like to leave. Now.”

“Unfortunately, Miss Chamberlain, I can’t allow that.”

“Why not?”

“It’s a matter of national security.”

Kate laughed loudly at that announcement. “You can’t be serious? You think what I do in my spare time is a matter of national security? I think that might be one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever heard.”

“It’s not so ridiculous if you’ve been consorting with communists intending to–”

“Communists?” The redhead threw back her head and laughed again. “Oh, this is beyond ridiculous. You think I have anything to do with communists? Why on earth would I have anything to do with them?”

“Brooker told us about a private club you attend regularly; one with a certain… reputation.”

There was a long pause as Kate considered his words. She suddenly realised that he wasn’t accusing her of being a communist at all. Thinking back, she remembered Millie’s cousin, Edward, being in a very similar situation not long before. Wondering how to proceed she set her jaw defiantly, although she was wringing her hands nervously in her lap.

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, unless you’re referring to the Big Bop Club where I work, and I can categorically assure you that there are no communists there.”

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

“No, actually, detective, I _don’t_ know that’s not what you mean. I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about. I am not, nor have I ever been, a communist. I don’t _know_ any communists.” She clenched her fists and glared. “If there’s something else, you suspect me of, I’d like to hear it because, quite frankly, this is completely ludicrous.”

“You share an apartment with Miss Camilla Harcourt?”

“And my daughter, yes.” Kate sighed dramatically. Now she had worked it out, she could see exactly where his mind was heading. Even if he suspected her of preferring the company of women, there was no way she was going to allow suspicion to fall on her girlfriend. “What? You think Millie’s a communist? Look, if you have any questions about how Millie spends her free time then you should probably speak to Detective Bryce about that. Lately he’s been seeing a lot more of her than we have.” She clenched her hand into a fist under the table. “In fact, that’s why I’ve been trying so hard to find a job. If, as I suspect, he’s planning on asking her to marry him at some point in the future I’d have to be able to support Christina and myself alone.”

Even the words caused bile to rise in her throat, but apparently it was enough to completely rule Millie out of any suspicions he had. Apparently, somehow, Jean and Hailey hadn’t reached his notice, as he didn’t mention them at all. He asked a few more questions, fishing for information about the club that she and Hailey often frequented, growing visibly frustrated as she continued with her assertions that she had no idea what he was talking about.

Finally there came a sharp rapping on the door and it opened. Kate had never really considered that she would be grateful to see Detective Bryce but, as he stepped into the room, relief flooded through her. He said something in a low voice to the detective who’d been interrogating her, earning himself a confused look and several questions that were too quiet for Kate to hear. Then they both turned to look at her seriously.

“It seems you’re free to go, Miss Chamberlain.”

“I was with Millie, so I brought her in with me.” Bryce told her, unwittingly confirming what she’d said about him spending time with her. “She’s waiting in reception.”

“Thank you.” Kate said, not meaning it in the slightest. As she reached the door, holding her breath and not entirely convinced that she wouldn’t be stopped, she paused. “So? Have you finally realised that I’m not actually a communist after all?”

The detective glanced in Bryce’s direction before huffing and nodding reluctantly. “Yeah, there’ll be no further actions brought against you. But be careful who you associate with, Miss Chamberlain. Once you’re on our radar, it’s difficult to slip under it again.”

Kate froze for a moment, before pulling herself together and shooting him a disdainful look. Screwing up her nose slightly, she turned and strode along the corridor with her head held high, trying to forget that she had spent the past twenty-four hours at the police station and no doubt looked a complete state.

Millie had held Christina’s hand tightly as they sat in the reception area of the police station. The teenager hadn’t spoken to the brunette, but she’d made no attempt to pull her hand free, either. She’s spend most of her time bouncing her knee impatiently, craning her neck to try and catch a glimpse of her mother being led along the corridor towards them.

The teenager noticed her mother seconds before Millie did and was off her chair immediately, dropping the brunette’s hand as she barrelled into the older redhead and wrapped her arms around her tightly. Kate smiled tiredly at Millie over Christina’s head, before bending to drop a kiss into her hair and returning the embrace. She murmured reassuringly to her, before pulling away and cupping her cheek.

“Kate, darling, you must be exhausted.” Millie said, not daring to do more than reach out and touch her forearm. She furrowed her eyebrows when the younger woman flinched away. “Are you alright?”

“Mmm… you’re right, I’m exhausted.” Kate agreed in a soft voice. “I just want to get home.”

“Come on then, let’s go.”

“Can I give you a lift?” Detective Bryce offered.

Christina answered before either woman could even open their mouths. “We’re not going anywhere with you.”

“Christina!” Kate frowned at her. “Remember your manners.”

“You can’t blame her for being a little mistrustful of the police, can you?” Millie said quickly, shooting the teenager an almost pleading look. “But I think we’ll walk, thank you, Bill. The fresh air will do Kate good.”

He nodded and watched as the trio left the building, Kate in the middle, almost being protected by the two women on either side. Christina slipped her hand into her mother’s squeezing hard and gazing up at her as though she couldn’t quite believe that Kate was there. Millie waited until they were around the corner from the police station before slipping her arm through her girlfriend’s and leaning into her side.

“We missed you.” She murmured, shooting the younger woman a warm smile. “I barely slept last night.”

“You were snoring.” Christina muttered irritably.

Kate laughed. “I told you that you snored but you wouldn’t believe me.”

“I do _not_ snore!”

“Two against one,” her girlfriend teased, “so we win.”

“I really did miss you, though, darling.”

“I missed you too. Both of you.” Kate agreed, looking between them.

“She didn’t miss you all that much.” Christina muttered, almost under her breath. When both women turned to look at her, with varying expressions on their faces, she shrugged. “What, you obviously didn’t if you were–”

“Please, don’t.” Millie requested quietly. “Darling, please let me explain properly.”

“Explain what properly?” Kate asked, looking between them in confusion.

“Something happened earlier.” Millie started, chewing her lip nervously. “I had no idea that it… I was caught by surprise and–”

“She kissed that detective.” Christina blurted out, stopping suddenly, folding her arms and sending the brunette the darkest scowl she could manage. “I caught them.”

“Christina, please…” Turning to look at Kate, who seemed to be struggling to understand what she meant, Mille reached out a hand. “Kate, darling, it honestly wasn’t–”

“Can we please just go home?” The older redhead requested wearily. “We can have this conversation there.”

They trudged further along the street, the teenager resolutely avoiding making eye contact or conversation with Millie as they headed for the tram that would take them to the end of their block. She pushed her arm through Kate’s holding her hand tightly as they walked. Millie did her best to ignore the glares she knew Christina was sending her, hoping beyond hope that she would be allowed to explain what had actually happened.

They didn’t mention it again until they arrived home. Kate dropped, exhausted, onto the settee and nodded gratefully when Millie offered to make her a cup of tea. Nothing was said until they were all seated comfortably with their drinks.

Looking around, the older redhead sighed and realised that no one was quite sure what to say. “Come on, then, tell me what happened.”

“Aunt Millie brought him to pick me up from Aunt Jean’s–”

“How’s Hailey?” Kate interrupted, looking at Millie.

“She’s battered and bruised and a little nervous, but she’ll be fine. You know Hailey; she’s putting on a brave face and insisting she’s absolutely fine. She’ll be delighted to know that you’ve been released.”

“We should call them.”

“We need to sort this out first, Mum.” Christina pointed out. “You were locked up for something you didn’t do and Aunt Millie kissed someone else.”

The brunette sighed, shaking her head sadly. “Christina, sweetheart, if you’d come down a couple of seconds earlier you’d have heard me telling Bill that I don’t care what people might think about me because you and your mum are my _family_ and I love you both very much.” She reached out and twisted a strand of the teenager’s hair around her finger. “He kissed me before I could stop him and I pushed him away.”

“I _saw_ you…” Christina persisted stubbornly. “Mum, I saw her kissing him.”

“Christina, love, I know Millie.” Kate told her softly, placing her index finger under the teenager’s chin and forcing her to meet her eyes. “I believe you, but I trust her. I know that she would never betray me like that. If she did have feelings for Detective Bryce she would have spoken to me about it first.”

“But–”

“I promise you I had no intention of kissing him.” Millie assured them both, although most of her attention was fixed on the young girl opposite her. “I was as shocked as you were, darling.”

Christina said nothing, dropping her gaze to her hands. She sat in silence for a moment, thinking over what she had seen. Kate and Millie exchanged a look over the top of her head, wondering what she was going to say in response to their assurances.

“Fine.” She muttered, looking directly at Millie. “Fine, but if you ever hurt her like that again I’ll make sure you’re sorry.”

“I never would.” Millie promised. The expression on the teenager’s face assured her that she was completely serious.

They said goodnight as Christina headed to bed, waiting until her bedroom door shut with a click before speaking. Kate shook her head as Millie opened her mouth to assure her, again, that the kiss had been completely one-sided. Instead, she reached out and ran a hand gently through the older woman’s hair, pulling her closer and resting their foreheads together for a long moment.

“I love you.”

“Kate, I love you, too. I didn’t–”

“I _know_ , Mills.” She assured her gently. “I believe you. I know that Bryce has a thing about you – so does Archie, by the way – and that you’d never betray me like that.”

“He said that Brooker had said things about you and that by living here with you and Christina I’m risking suspicions falling on me as well. I told him that I didn’t care, that you’re my family and that perhaps he shouldn’t believe everything a murderer told him.”

“He’s got a point, though.” Kate sighed. “They asked me questions about you and the club I go to with Hailey. They said they suspected me of being a communist. It’s the same as with Edward.”

“Darling, they can’t prove anything. This changes nothing.”

“I don’t want you and the others to get dragged into this mess, because you know that they won’t stop now that they think they know about me.”


	11. Chapter 11

Since she’d come home, Jean had been doing her best to ensure that Hailey was comfortable and had everything she needed. At first, the younger woman had thoroughly enjoyed all the attention her girlfriend was lavishing on her. After a while, however, she had started to find it almost suffocating.

When Jean moved to check her blankets were tucked around her securely for about the tenth time, Hailey caught her by the wrist and tugged. Not expecting the movement, Jean swayed alarmingly, before toppling into the younger woman’s lap.

“That’s better.” Hailey laughed, wrapping her arms around Jean’s waist and holding her in place.

“Hailey!”

When she attempted to stand up, Hailey shook her head and tightened her grip. “Nope.”

“Hailey, I’ve got things to do.”

Pouting, the younger woman kept her hold on her girlfriend without loosening it at all. “Aren’t I more important than the bookstore?”

“Of course you are, dear, but you’re the one who keeps assuring me that you’re perfectly fine and I don’t need to keep fussing over you.” Jean pointed out, arching an eyebrow.

Instead of replying, Hailey shifted their positions so that Jean was trapped between her body and the back of the settee. She smiled down at the older woman, before leaning in and kissing her softly. Jean responded immediately sinking a hand into her hair and relishing in the feeling of having her so close.

She had been beyond terrified when she realised that Hailey was missing. The fear had been far worse than when she, herself, had been taken not so long ago. Jean thought that she would have put up with that a thousand times over rather than knowing that Hailey was in a life-threatening situation. She couldn’t bear the idea of her girlfriend being hurt – or worse.

“It’s OK, I’m here.” Hailey whispered, feeling Jean shaking beside her. She pulled her into a hug; warmth spreading from everywhere their bodies were touching. “I’m not going anywhere, Jean.”

“But you could… so easily…”

“I’m fine.” Hailey promised. “He didn’t do anything to me. You had worse, so did Kate. In fact, I’ve had worse loads of times before when I didn’t have such a beautiful nurse to help me through it.”

Jean scoffed, but snuggled into Hailey’s arms anyway. The younger woman smiled broadly into her hair. If she told anyone that Jean was the snuggling type – usually the one to initiate it, in fact – they would never have believed her in a million years. The knowledge that Jean let down her walls and allowed her vulnerable side to show when they were together filled her with such affection for the brunette she could hardly stand it. Hailey felt as though she could burst with the sheer amount of love she felt for her girlfriend.

“If you really do have to go to work…” She teased, knowing that Jean had no intention of moving from her current position.

As she’d expected, the older woman huffed irritably at the suggestion. “I don’t have a shift today. I was going to go round to see Millie and Kate.”

“I’m sure they could use a little time alone.” Hailey pointed out, tracing indistinct patterns on the flesh of Jean’s stomach with her fingertips, just underneath the hem of her blouse. “I’m surprised they haven’t asked us to look after Christina.”

Jean chuckled at the meaning behind her words, shaking her head at the eyebrow wiggle that accompanied it. “I suspect that, should they need someone to watch Christina, they’ll call on Iris rather than us today.”

“Then we should definitely make the most of having some time to ourselves.” Hailey told her decisively, her fingers already making short work of the buttons on Jean’s blouse.

* * *

That afternoon they congregated at Kate and Millie’s apartment to debrief after the previous day’s events. Hailey smiled as she consented to being pulled into a tight hug by the woman she considered to be as close to a mother as she needed, allowing Iris to fuss over her until she was satisfied there were no lasting effects to her abduction.

Once Christina and Iris’ children were suitably distracted in the teenage redhead’s bedroom out of earshot, they settled themselves down to talk about the case. Three of the five were very much of the opinion that things were finished now that Brooker had been arrested and confessed to the crimes. Hailey, however, had a nagging feeling in the back of her mind that things weren’t quite as sewn up as they were hoping. She caught Kate’s eyes, seeing that there was the tiniest hint of doubt there, too. 

“I think we’ve missed something.”

Everyone looked at Hailey in complete bemusement as she jumped off the settee and strode over to the table where the files and sheets of paper that had been collected during the investigation were still resting. Jean exchanged a look with Millie and Iris, while Kate followed her across the floor to peer down at the paperwork.

“There must be someone else involved.”

“What d’you mean?”

“Logan started the whole thing off and then Brooker helped. They brought Michelson in to try and get close to Kate so they could keep an eye on us and find out what we knew.”

“Right…?”

“But why did they think that we might know anything at all?”

Millie furrowed her eyebrows. “What?”

“There must have been someone else who told them that we knew something… or that we might. Also, how did they know that Kate has no interest in men?”

“I wondered that myself.” Jean mused, glancing at the redhead. “I know how careful she is… we all are. It’s not a logical conclusion to come to, even if she had given the young man the brush off.”

“The most obvious explanation would have been that she already had a boyfriend.”

“Maybe he was just extremely arrogant?” Millie muttered irritably.

“No he… he said… he said that I didn’t know what I was missing, but he’d show me.” Kate said with a frown, moving to stand next to Hailey. “I didn’t think anything of it until he asked me whether he was just not pretty enough for my tastes. I thought it was an odd choice of words, but…”

“He must have known that you are… you know…” Hailey shrugged.

“But how?” Iris demanded, looking between them. “How did he know?”

“Someone told him.” Jean murmured thoughtfully. “Someone who knows.”

“No one knows. No one who would tell anyone, anyway.”

Millie frowned at her girlfriend’s certainty. “Well clearly someone did. He knew to target _you_ specifically. Someone must have given him your name.”

“Well I didn’t tell anyone.”

“I’m not saying you did.”

“You’re implying it.”

“Kate!”

“What, Millie?” Kate snapped, scowling at her. “ _What_?” 

An uncomfortable silence fell in the room for a long moment. As the couple glared at each other, their friends exchanged an awkward look; clearly trying to decide who it would be that would break the tension. A short, silent battle followed, before Jean let out an exasperated breath.

“We haven’t got time for this nonsense.” She announced at last. “We need to work out who gave them Kate’s name and why.”

“Well it wasn't because of me.” Kate muttered.

“Could it be someone who would have known you from your club?” Jean asked, turning to look at Hailey. “Could someone there have told them?”

Her girlfriend shook her head vehemently. “No! I trust everyone there. They’re in the same boat as we are. They wouldn’t risk exposing themselves or anyone else.”

“You’re sure there’s absolutely no one who would have let something slip?”

“We said no, didn’t we.” Kate snapped as Millie continued to push the line of enquiry.

“I think we need to speak to the police and get their take on things.” Iris suggested, not noticing the young redhead stiffening at her words.

“I can phone Detective Bryce. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind coming to speak to us, considering the circumstances.”

“I’m sure he wouldn’t.” Kate replied sarcastically. “I’m sure he’d be more than happy to come and _speak_ to you, Millie.”

“Oh for… I _knew_ you weren’t–”

“I don’t want to talk about this now.” Her girlfriend replied frostily, looking pointedly out of the window.

Millie huffed loudly and stood up. She moved across to the telephone and started dialing a number. With an irritated exhalation, Kate turned and headed out of the apartment, making her way down to the porch. She paced angrily for a couple of moments, before kicking one of the wooden posts around the edge. There was a crunching sound and the top came away from the railing, leaving it hanging at a strange angle.

“What did that post do to you, huh?” Hailey asked softly.

“Nothing.”

“Sure looks like it.”

“It’s nothing, Hailey, really.” Kate told her. “It’s fine.”

“Try again, Chamberlain.” Her friend ordered, arching an eyebrow and folding her arms. “That ain’t fooling anyone.”

“I’m thinking about taking Christina to Boston or New York… somewhere on the east coast, anyway.”

“What? For a vacation?” Hailey furrowed her eyebrows. “Now probably isn’t the best time for that, Kate.”

“Not for a vacation, no.” The redhead said softly. “I’m considering more of a permanent move.”

The older woman looked aghast. “Why? Does Millie know? How long have you been thinking about this?”

Kate exhaled deeply and perched on the bench against the wall. Leaning her head backwards, she picked absentmindedly at the flaking paint beneath her hands and did her best to avoid catching Hailey’s eyes. After a moment, her friend settled herself beside her on the bench, tentatively reaching out to squeeze her hand.

“Talk to me, Kate. I might be able to help.”

“That’s precisely why I can’t talk to you; any of you.” She replied confusingly. “You can’t help and if you try… I just…” Taking a deep breath, Kate shrugged and sent Hailey a weak smile. “We need a change of scenery… a fresh start. So much has happened here and I don’t think it’s good for Christina to dwell on it all.”

“So that’s it? You’re upping and leaving everything and everyone behind?” Hailey demanded accusingly. “I thought we were friends, Kate. I thought we were family?”

“We are.” She replied immediately. “Just… please try and understand, Hailey. It’s for the best; for all of us.”

“But I don’t understand. How can it be for the best if you’re running away and leaving us all behind? Are you even going to give _Millie_ the chance to go with you? Were you even going to tell us before you left?”

“Please, Hailey…”

“Will you at least tell me why you and Millie are fighting?” She requested in a softer voice. “After everything you’ve been through what could possibly be so bad–”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t start all that again.” Hailey told her, rolling her eyes. “We both know you’ll admit it eventually.”

Sighing deeply, Kate twisted her hands in her lap. “Millie kissed Bryce yesterday. Or he kissed her. She says that she pushed him away and told him she wasn’t interested.”

“But you don’t believe her?”

“No, I do.” Kate shook her head quickly. “I trust Millie. I just know that it would be safer if she was interested in Bryce.”

“What’s happened? This isn’t like you at all.” Hailey shook her head in disbelief. Realisation swept over her face. “They said something to you at the station, didn’t they? Threatened you or…”

“Hailey, please don’t do this.” Kate almost begged. “It’s better for everyone if we just leave San Francisco.”

“You can’t run away from who you are, Kate. We’ve all done that for far too long.”

“I’m not running away; I’m protecting you all.”

“From what?”

“The police didn’t really think I was a communist, Hailey, just like they never thought Edward Harcourt was one.” Kate pointed out. “They know what I am and they let me know that they’re going to be watching me. Apparently once you’re on their radar it’s hard to slip under it again. I refuse to be the person who puts you in that same position.”

“That’s stupid.” Hailey shook her head. “You can’t punish yourself and us for something that might or might not happen.”

Kate sighed deeply. “You’re right. Forget I said anything.”

“I promise nothing bad is going to happen. You and Christina are much safer here with your family.”

“I guess the east coast will just have to wait a while.”

“That’s the spirit.” Hailey beamed at her, pulling Kate into a sideways hug. “Right, come on. Let’s got and see how they’re getting on upstairs.” Sensing her reluctance to go back inside and join the others, Hailey chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’ll deflect any questions or comments about your tantrum.”

“It was not a tantrum!”

“Yeah, yeah, come on.”

They traipsed back up the stairs and entered the apartment just as Millie was ending her phone call. Kate avoided meeting anyone’s eyes, fussing about by refilling the teapot, as the brunette returned the handset to the cradle and turned to look at everyone else.

“According to Bill they’ve closed the case. They’re not questioning whether there was a fourth man; they’ve got Brooker and Logan and Michelson is dead.” Millie informed them all seriously. “He understood why we think there might have been someone else working with them, but he doesn’t think they’ll find them.”

“So why would they even bother attempting to?” Kate muttered.

“Sorry?”

Meeting Millie’s gaze, the redhead arched an eyebrow, mirroring her girlfriend’s expression. “You heard me.”

Jumping in before they could start arguing again, Hailey cleared her throat. “So we need to think about who might have known both Kate and Logan or Kate and Brooker. I think Michelson was probably told what to do… he doesn’t seem to have had the brains to come up with something like this.”

“We need to start drawing up lists of everyone that might have an insight into Kate’s life.” Iris suggested quickly. “Whether or not they seem capable of dropping her in it, we need to be able to cross-reference them with people who came into contact with Logan and Brooker.”

“I can give you the names of people we know from the club.” Hailey agreed immediately. “I imagine they’re the only ones who’d possibly be able to tell them anything remotely incriminating.”

“Right.” Kate agreed with a nod.

“The sooner the better, because once we’ve got that list we can start cross-referencing.” Jean pointed out. “The sooner we work this out the sooner we can _all_ start feeling a little bit safer.”

“I’m going to check on the children.” Kate said, not meeting anyone’s eyes or waiting for a response before crossing the room.

As soon as Christina’s bedroom door closed, Jean turned to fix her girlfriend with a steady stare. “So? Is Kate alright? What did she say?”

“She’s more affected by being arrested than she wants to admit.” Hailey told them sadly. “I think they really put the frighteners on her and now she doesn’t trust the police at all.”

“Maybe I should–?” Jean started, but Hailey shook her head.

“She doesn’t really want to talk about it. I think she really just wants to forget it happened.” Shrugging, she turned her attention back to the list she was working on. “As long as she’s got Millie and the rest of us, she’ll be OK.”

After Hailey’s words, no one was particularly surprised that Kate wasn’t keen to head out with them to follow up on the list that they had pulled together, cross-referenced and refined. Millie hesitated as the others headed for the door, holding back and catching Kate gently by the hand.

“I’m sorry for snapping at you.” She apologised softly. “I understand why you’d be angry with me for what happened yesterday.”

“I’m not angry with you.” Kate sighed, shaking her head. “Like I said yesterday, I trust you and I love you. I’m angry with him and with them.”

Gathering Kate in a tight hug, Millie pressed her lips to the side of her head. “It’s over. You’re home and you’re safe. Nothing is going to happen to you now.”

Not remotely convinced by her words, Kate sent her a tight smile before kissing her again. “I do love you, Millie. I always have and I always will.”

“I know, my darling. I love you, too.” She smiled and kissed Kate quickly, before turning to follow the others. 

  
Kate leant in the doorway to wait for Christina to come back in after saying goodbye to Dennis and Cadence, before settling herself on the sofa and calling her daughter to join her.

Immediately noticing that something was wrong, the teenager furrowed her eyebrows and tilted her head to one side questioningly. “What’s happened?”

“Nothing’s happened, sweetheart. I just… I need to ask you something.”

“Alright…?”

Kate smiled softly at her. “While I was in the police station, they asked me all sorts of questions about who I spend my time with. Reading between the lines, I’m sure they were trying to find out about me–”

“And Millie?”

“Well, not specifically.” Her mother sighed. “Although they did mention that we live here with her. They also mentioned that they’re going to be keeping an eye on me and I don’t want… I don’t want everyone else being caught up in this, too.”

“Hailey and Aunt Jean, you mean?”

Kate nodded slowly. “Yes. So… how would you feel about taking a little trip out to the east coast?”

“Just you and me? Will we be coming back from this trip?” Christina asked, seeing through her mother’s words instantly.

“I’m not sure.”

“Are you sure we have to leave everyone behind to keep them safe?”

“I’m not sure of anything, sweetheart.” Kate admitted sadly. “Maybe it would just be a little holiday, but maybe not.”

“We’re not telling them, are we?”

Shaking her head, the older redhead fought back her tears. “No, Christina, we’re not. We’ll write them a letter and leave before they get back.”

“You’re going to break Millie’s heart.”

“I know.” Kate told her daughter sadly, unable to stop her tears spilling over. “But it’s better than the alternative.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the final chapter.
> 
> Thank you so much for sticking with it - I hope you've enoyed!
> 
> :)

Within a couple of hours they had managed to cross more than a few names off their list. Hailey and Jean had almost eliminated everyone from theirs, while Millie and Iris had found it slightly trickier to track down everyone they wanted to talk to. By the time they had agreed to meet back at the Big Bop, there were only three more names to investigate.

“So, out of these three, which do you think is the most likely to have passed the information over to Brooker?” Jean asked, pushing the list across the table towards her girlfriend.

Hailey spared it a cursory glance before answering. “Jenny Ashton. I’ve never really trusted her. I thought that we were safe because she would be in the same position as us if anyone found out the truth of who we are, but now that I know that someone _has_ betrayed us, she’d be my best bet.”

“Right, so we should go and speak to her first.”

Millie looked between her friends quickly. “I’d like to go with you, Hailey, if I may.”

“Be my guest.” Jean nodded. “Iris and I will make sure we can definitely link her to Logan and Brooker.”

Settling on their plan, the four women finished their drinks and headed out of the club to complete their assigned tasks. Hailey drove through the neighbourhood to the address they’d found for Jenny Ashton. They sat in the car for a couple of moments, staring at the apartment before they girded themselves enough to actually go and question the woman.

“If she’s the reason Kate had to go through all that…”

“If she is we’ll find out, Millie.” Hailey assured her, reaching over and squeezing the older woman’s hand.

Determinedly they climbed out of Hailey’s car and headed up the path towards the building. Reading the cards beside the door, the located the correct apartment and waited for the woman to answer the door. When she did, the petite blonde stared out at them in bemusement for a moment, before realising where she recognised Hailey from and inviting them in.

“We were wondering whether you knew someone called Daniel Brooker?” Hailey asked, smiling and accepting the cup of coffee she was offered.

Jenny paused before handing Millie her own cup. “Sugar… sorry, what was your name?”

“Millie.” She replied, forcing herself to smile. “Millie Harcourt.”

“Ah, so _you’re_ the famous Millie.” The blonde smiled as she settled herself on her sofa. “The reason that Kate would never let me buy her a drink.”

The brunette shared a meaningful look with her friend. “Really? I can’t imagine Kate turning down a drink.”

Hailey laughed. “Kate just didn’t want you getting the wrong idea, Jenny. Neither of us did.”

“Oh…” A soft, tinkling laugh met their ears as she read into Hailey’s words. “Well, I did always wonder if you two were an item. You looked so good together, I suppose it was inevitable.”

“Yeah, well…” The younger woman avoided her friend’s eyes. “How do you know Brooker?”

“I don’t, not really.” Jenny shrugged. “Why?”

“He’s been giving Kate a bit of bother… not taking no for an answer, that kinda thing.”

“Really? He seemed lovely the one time I met him.” The blonde told them, apparently genuinely surprised by Hailey’s words. “He’s a friend of my brother’s.”

“Your brother?” Millie breathed, looking at Hailey in concern.

“My brother Charlie. He works at the club as a bouncer for a bit of extra cash every now and then. You’d probably recognise him if you saw him, Hailey.”

“Where might he be now? Perhaps Brooker is with him and we can speak to him ourselves?”

Jenny shook her head, taking a sip from her cup before speaking. “I doubt it. Charlie works as a porter down at the railway station. That’s where he’ll be now.”

They hurriedly finished their drinks and headed out to the car. Neither discussed the new information before they were settled and the doors were closed. Then Millie turned to look at Hailey, who opened her mouth at the exact same moment.

“That can’t be a coincidence, surely?”

“I reckon Charlie is our guy.”

Hailey nodded enthusiastically. “You’re right, it’s no coincidence. Charlie must have recognised Kate from the club and told Brooker, who passed it on to Michelson.”

“So we need to get down to the railway station and speak to Charlie Ashton as soon as possible.”

They decided to call in on the others and fill them in on their discovery before going to track their new suspect down. Iris and Jean were just as eager to tell them what they’d discovered and the four women spoke over each other for a couple of moments until the eldest of the group held up a hand and shook her head.

“This is ridiculous. Hailey, Millie, what have you found?”

“Jenny Ashton’s brother, Charlie, is friends with Brooker and sometimes works as a bouncer at the club Hailey and Kate go to.” Millie informed them hastily. “He works as a porter at the railway station, so we thought we should head down there and ask him a few questions.”

Iris exchanged a quick look with Jean. “We’ve found another link… one between Charlie Ashton and Willard Logan. Logan was Ashton’s godfather. It’s highly likely that Logan introduced Ashton and Brooker in the first place.”

“Do you think we should call Kate? Maybe she’d be able to recognise Ashton?”

Millie shook her head. “She didn’t want to get involved and we’d either have to bring Christina or waste time taken her over to Iris’. We should just get down to the railway station as quickly as we can.”

Agreeing with her assessment, they trooped out of the apartment and piled into Hailey’s car, heading towards the station as quickly as they dared.

* * *

“Are you sure this is for the best?” Christina asked as she and Kate headed across San Francisco in the direction of the railway station.

They had packed as much as they could carry into two suitcases, before Kate had written a letter of apology to Millie and the others, which they had both signed. Leaving the apartment had been a wrench, the feeling of leaving home settling heavily on both of them, but Kate had propelled her daughter towards the tram and done her best to convince them both it was the most sensible option.

“No,” Kate admitted softly as they entered the station and looked around for a board to indicate which trains were leaving from which platform, “but it is the safest option for everyone.”

“They’re going to be devastated that we’ve just disappeared.”

“I know, sweetheart.” The older redhead sighed deeply. “But we’ll phone as soon as we’re settled and it’s safe, alright?”

Christina didn’t look convinced, but didn’t make any further comment. Instead, she helped her mother to search the information boards for the train they were looking for. Finally they spotted the one leaving for Denver and hurried to the ticket office to make sure they could get to the platform before it left.

“Stay close.” Kate cautioned as they weaved their way through the crowds at the station. “The last thing I need is to lose you.”

“I’m doing my best!” Christina complained. “Can you just– oof!”

She stopped abruptly, walking straight into Kate as the older woman came to a sudden halt. Before she could ask what the matter was, or even work out the cause of the situation, Kate had turned and grasped her hand, dragging her along in her wake.

Christina tried to look over her shoulder to try and work out what they were suddenly fleeing from, but Kate was darting all over the place and the teenager needed to keep her eyes ahead of her to prevent her loosing her footing and tumbling to the ground. Heart beating rapidly, she didn’t argue as Kate suddenly pushed her sideways into a building and moved them out of sight behind the doorway.

“Shhh…” Kate cautioned as she caught her daughter’s eyes and saw the questions there.

As she pulled Christina into a tight hug and rested her chin on her head, the girl could feel her mother’s heart thumping in her chest. She realised that it wasn’t completely as a result of their sprint through the station and wondered what could possibly have scared her so much that they were hiding in some kind of shed.

Footsteps approached, slow and measured and sending alarm through both women. Kate looked around desperately for a hiding space. Her eyes fell on a small gap underneath the work bench opposite and she pushed Christina and her suitcase into the gap without a second thought, dragging a length of sacking over the entrance and hiding her from view.

Just as she slipped back into her hiding place, the footsteps came to a halt outside the door to the shed and Kate held her breath. Her pulse was thundering in her ears and she was sure that her breathing was deafeningly loud and would give her away instantly.

The door creaked open sickeningly slowly and Kate’s heart dropped into her stomach. Her eyes darted towards her daughter’s hiding place, checking that she was completely hidden from sight. The redhead knew that she would be spotted as soon as her pursuer entered the shed, but as long as Christina was safe she didn’t much care.

Kate shrank back as a shadow fell over the room, the man in the doorway pausing, evidently for full effect before entering. She closed her eyes and held her breath, knowing that it would do absolutely no good, but unable to stop herself.

“Why did you run?” The man asked, closing the shed door and advancing as Kate pressed herself back against the wall.

“I know who you are. You were with Michelson at the Mayor’s office that day…. Charlie?” Kate accused him, her voice sounding small and scared between them. “And you were at the department store that day he was shot… it was you?”

He nodded. “It was me. Everyone thought it was Daniel, but he didn’t have the guts. Michelson wasn’t useful anymore and needed to be got rid of. Daniel was supposed to do it, but he couldn’t.” The man scoffed. “He was quick enough to take the credit for it, though.”

“He’s been charged for Michelson’s murder.”

“Which is why I can’t just let you go now that you know what really happened.” Charlie said as though it was the obvious outcome of the situation.

“I’m going.” She told him hurriedly, flinching away as he grasped her arm tightly. “I was on my way to the ticket office. I’m leaving and getting as far away from here as possible. You don’t need to–”

“Can’t take the risk.” He told her gruffly.

“ _Please_ don’t do this.”

“Out. Now.” He dragged her towards the door. “Don’t make a fuss or it’ll be much worse for you. My friends and I know where your friends live, remember. We know where your kid lives.”

Not doubting that he would do something to her family if she struggled for a second, Kate allowed herself to be pulled from the shed and back into the hustle and bustle of the station. They walked towards the entrance, Charlie speaking to many of his colleagues as they passed, laughing as though nothing out of the ordinary was happening. She stiffened involuntarily as he introduced her to several people as his girlfriend, concentrating on the burning on her bicep where his fingers were digging in painfully.

Before they reached the entrance, however, Charlie took a sharp right and led her through a doorway marked ‘authorised personnel only’. Swallowing thickly, Kate considered asking where they were going, but the grim, determined expression on the man’s face caused her to keep her mouth shut.

They rounded the side of a building and Kate realised that they were walking parallel to the tracks. She could see people milling around on the platforms and desperately hoped that someone, anyone, would see them and realise that something was wrong. She stumbled along with Charlie still grasping her arm painfully tightly, her eyes trained on the passengers in the hope of meeting someone’s eyes.

* * *

The door closed with an ominous bang. Christina didn’t dare move for a couple of minutes, convinced that her mother’s abductor would return and catch her. As time passed, however, she realised that they were getting further and further away and she would have no idea where they’d gone.

Shooting out from underneath the bench, Christina wrenched open the door and almost tumbled out into the station. She stared wide-eyed around her, trying to work out which way they might have gone, before deciding to head for the entrance in the hopes that they were leaving that way.

She dodged through the crowds, ignoring the shouts as she careened into people and almost knocked them over. She skidded to a halt in the middle of the lobby area, looking wildly around again for any clue about her mother’s whereabouts.

“Christina?”

“Aunt Jean!” The teenager raced across the space and threw herself at the older woman, hugging her desperately, before pulling back. “Mum… a man took her. He said he killed that man the other day but now because Mum knew he couldn’t let her go. I think he’s going to kill her too.”

“Where did they go, Christina?”

“I don’t know!” She sobbed, shaking her head. “I was hiding when they went and I was too late to see.”

“Did either of them say his name?”

“Charlie.”

“OK.” Jean wrapped her in another tight hug as Millie and Iris spotted them and rushed over. “He’s got Kate.”

“What were you even doing here?” Millie demanded, dragging the teenager into her arms and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “

“That’s not important at the moment.” Hailey reminded her impatiently. She had a very good idea what the answer to that question would be and she felt incredibly guilty that she hadn’t told anyone what Kate had been planning. “We need to find her before anything happens.”

Ordering Christina to go and sit in Hailey’s car, safely out of the way, the other women rushed back out onto the platforms. They spread out, searching the crowds of people for any sign of their friend. The more they searched with no hint about where she might be, the more desperate they became.

Hailey was just turning to head back to the entrance when something moving on the other side of the tracks caught her eyes. She let out a triumphant shout and whirled around to try and catch the attention of her friends or anyone else that might be able to help them.

“Please… you need to help. Our friend’s been abducted by a man… look,” she pointed at the figures moving away from the station, “they’re there. Please, you have to help us.”

The guard glanced at the clock above the platform quickly. “There isn’t a train for ten minutes. If we hurry we can cross a little further down the line and head them off.”

Sending him a wide, grateful smile, Hailey quickly informed the others of what was happening and she, Millie and Iris charged off in the direction the guard had pointed. The guard returned, telling Jean that he had telephoned the police and so she waited behind impatiently to point them towards the action when they finally arrived to help.

They barely noticed the uneven surface under their feet, sprinting along the side of the track until they reached the crossing that the guard had mentioned. Sparing the briefest of glances to make sure there were no trains, they ran across in time to see Kate and her captor rounding the side of a wooden hut out of sight.

“Charlie Ashton!” Millie called as they neared the corner. “We know you’re there. The police are on their way. Let Kate go.”

There was no answer, just a muffled cry and a scuffling sound. Unable to wait any longer, Millie threw herself around the corner. Hailey and Iris almost knocked her over as they followed and realised that she was standing stock-still, staring at the scene in front of them.

Ashton was holding Kate tightly in front of him, a jagged piece of glass clutched in his hand and poking the redhead in the neck. She was scrabbling at his arm, scratching and trying to prise him off her, but to absolutely no effect. Ashton didn’t even seem to notice her attempts at all.

“Let her go.” Millie repeated. “You’ll already be going to prison for one murder. Don’t make it two.”

“Who says I’m going to prison?” He called back angrily.

“Don’t be stupid.” Hailey told him. “You’re clearly trying to hide something… why else would you have Kate.”

Holding up a hand, Millie moved forward slowly. “Don’t do anything stupid. Put the glass down and let her go.”

The sound of a whistle from somewhere behind them startled everyone. Charlie shoved Kate hard, sending her tumbling towards Millie, before turning tail and racing away through the huts and discarded carriages. Seconds later, dozens of police officers darted past them, hot on his trail.

“Kate?” Millie buried her face in wild red curls for a moment, before pulling back and examining her carefully. She pressed her thumb against the small nick on the side of her girlfriend’s neck, causing Kate to hiss with pain. “What the hell were you doing? When did you work out it was him?”

“Truthfully? When I saw him on the platform. We locked eyes and I just knew. I had to get away and– Christina!”

“She’s fine, she’s safe.” Millie promised quickly. “She’s in Hailey’s car out of the way.”

“I’m so sorry, Mills.” Kate murmured, resting her forehead against her girlfriend’s sternum.

“If you didn’t know it was him until then… why were you here?”

Turning to head slowly back towards the station, the redhead sighed and glanced at Hailey for a moment. “We were leaving San Francisco. Christina and me. I thought… I thought you’d all be safer if I went. The detective yesterday told me that they’d always be watching me and I didn’t want to risk–”

“You’re an absolute idiot, Kate Chamberlain.” Millie told her, stopping and forcing her girlfriend to meet her eyes. Hailey and Iris tactfully kept walking. “We’re safer together. Look what happens when you’re left alone for ten minutes!”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry.” Millie sighed. “Just, please, promise me that you’ll stay. You and Christina need your family and we need you. If I lost you…”

“I broke my own heart when I left.” Kate murmured, shaking her head. “It was stupid. I just wanted to protect you.”

“You can do that much more effectively if you’re in the same city as me, you know?”

“It’s probably a good job we didn’t get as far as the ticket office, isn’t it?” Kate said with a small smile.

Millie laughed, pressing a kiss to her forehead and starting to walk in the direction of their friends. “Definitely because after this, you’re buying the drinks for the foreseeable future. It’s a good job I love you, because you are ridiculously bad for my blood pressure.”

Kate chuckled, pressing a quick kiss to the back of her hand, before dropping it. “I love you, too.”


End file.
